


Not the Routine

by Vicb0922



Category: Women's Soccer RPF
Genre: F/F, krashlyn - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-13
Updated: 2017-01-15
Packaged: 2018-08-08 13:46:42
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 24,562
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7760125
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vicb0922/pseuds/Vicb0922
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ali Krieger is used to the routine of winning soccer matches. She is getting bored with the process. What happens when she meets a golden-eyed beauty who alters that routine? Will she need that routine more than ever or will she forget rhat routine and live the way she wants?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Under the Influence

This win was like no other. Winning had started to feel like every other at this point; it didn’t feel special anymore. After a win, there was an expected routine of events to follow. The team would gather and sign autographs, they would go to their respective apartments, and finally they would meet up to drink and celebrate their win. This night was just like any other for Ali Krieger—routine. 

“Hey girlie! You doin’ ok? You’re not as excited after the big win as I thought you would be” Crystal asked once she got to Ali’s apartment. Not that she couldn’t tell Crystal the truth, she could, but she didn’t want to ruin her best friend’s night. She opted with throwing out a simple “Yeah I’m happy! Let’s get the girls and drink!”

Tonight the girls decided to go to The Corner Tavern, which has a dance floor open on the weekends. It had easily become one of the girls’ favorite bars. As soon as they walked in, the crowd of people swarmed them. There were so many chants and yells that it overwhelmed Ali. She wanted to enjoy a relatively calm night and she could already tell that it was not going to happen tonight. Ali walked straight to the bar and ordered shots for everyone on her team.   
Phil, the bartender that was always there, told Ali he was proud of her and that they did great tonight. She of course laughed and added, “Phil, you say that after every game when we come here, you old man!” They talked for a little longer then she took the shots to her friends.

“To a great win and an even better night ahead!”  
Crystal just looked at her with concern.

As the night went on, all the girls were long past tipsy except Ali. She had been watching what she drank since the fourth round of shots were passed out. Finally, she told Christen (Nairn) that she was heading to the bar to get a beer and had to quit dancing. After many boos and puppy dog eyes from her teammates, she made her way to the bar.

While waiting for Phil to come over, she looked to the left and saw a pair of golden hazel eyes looking back at her. She had seen these eyes every time she had come to this bar. She didn’t know the girl who they belonged to, but she did know the genuine smile that followed after the smile.  
Golden eyes called Phil over to her and whispered something in his ear. He winked and nodded.   
Phil walked over to Ali and asked her what she wanted to drink and she just replied with “you know the beer I like.” This is one reason Ali loved this bar, because they have German beer. Phil smiled and grabbed one Hefeweizen and twenty shots of Fireball. Ali looked confused. He winked and looked at the golden eyed mystery girl and said the drinks were taken care of. Golden eyes smiled and nodded. 

Ali, already in hateful mood, left the drinks and walked straight over to the girl. She then began with her rant. “Hey, I’m Ali. First of all, I see you here every weekend and you don’t say anything. You sit there just looking at everyone at this bar. You seem a little stalker-ish. Second, I don’t want or need your free drinks. If I want something, I can get it myself so no thanks. And third, if this is how you try to talk to a girl, you need some help. You are cute, but this pickup method sucked. I’m definitely not interested.”  
At this point all of her teammates had stopped dancing and began making their way over to the bar to listen. 

The golden eyed girl stood and Ali finally got a glimpse of her full body. The girl was beautiful. She was tall and toned. She had a deep dimple on her cheek. Ali noticed the full sleeve of tattoos on the girl and couldn’t help but stare.

The girl then replied. “Hey Ali, I’m Ashlyn. Let’s get a few things straight. I am here all the time, you’re right. Do you want to know why? I’ll just assume you do. I actually own this bar. That brings me to the next point. I’m not a stalker, I watch everyone for their own safety. I sit here so I can see if anyone puts a pill in a drink or any other safety issue. I know you don’t need my free drinks and you can buy your own, but get this it wasn’t just for you. It was for the whole team, so don’t flatter yourself too much. And lastly, if I was trying to pick you up, you would know. You wouldn’t have to question it. In all honesty, you’re cute too but you seem like a princess and that’s definitely not my type. So Ali, the next time you come in here, you should probably think about apologizing.”  
Ashlyn turned to Phil, “I’m going upstairs, if you need me holler.” And with that, she walked away.

Ali’s jaw was on the floor. She had never been so embarrassed. Her teammates went back to dancing and Crystal watched Ali astonished. Ali looked at Phil and he said to sit because he wanted to tell her something. After he served drinks to the majority of people standing at the bar, he came back over.

“Ali, you’re a good woman so I’m going to tell you something. Do you remember two weeks ago when you came into the bar with that man?”

Ali thought back.  
~Tim had asked her on a date. She didn’t particularly like him, but she also knew she needed to get back in the game of dating. She accepted with a push from Crystal. Unsurprisingly, Tim was not a classy guy, he took her to a bar on the first date. And only date, Ali thought to herself. It so happened that they duo ended up at The Corner Tavern. Ali remember walking in and having a few strong drinks with Tim, who seemed to look at the waitress more than her. She told Tim that she was ready to be taken home and he convinced her to have one more drink. She said yes but went to the restroom before the drink arrived. When she walked out, the drink was there with no Tim. Phil said he left.~

Phil then said, “Tim put a roofie in your drink when you went to the bathroom. Ashlyn saw this and had the security team escort him outside. She called the police and they took him to jail. That’s why you haven’t seen him since.”  
Ali was shocked. She didn’t know what to say. The only thing that registered in her mind was that she needed a drink and to apologize. 

Two hours later, the bar had closed. No one was there except Phil and Ali. Ali was sloshed. She had drank constantly since Phil had talked to her. Ali told her teammates to leave without her because she still needed to talk to Ashlyn. Phil knew that Ali was drunk, so he called Ashlyn and told her to come downstairs.

Ashlyn trudged down the steps in a cutoff and ball shorts. She was ready for tonight to be over. Phil has closed the bar for years, so she wasn’t really sure why he called her to come down. As soon as she hit the bottom step, she heard that cute mumbled voice.   
“Shit,” she said under her breath, “what’s up Phil?”  
“Well, as you can see boss, Ali is still here and has had way too much to drink. She took a cab here but can’t take one back because she forgot her address. What are we supposed to do?”  
Ali began mumbling incoherently to Ashlyn, who couldn’t understand a word.  
“Alright, Ali where’s your phone?” Ashlyn asked. Ali pointed to her purse. Ashlyn asked her to get it out and when she did, it was dead.  
“Great, okay. Phil, help me take Ali upstairs. She can sleep in my bed and I’ll sleep in the guest bedroom.”  
Phil grabbed Ali under one arm and Ashlyn grabbed under the other. It didn’t take long to realize that this method wouldn’t work with the slender staircase. 

Ashlyn told Phil that he could leave and she would pick Ali up and carry her up the rest of the step. Once at the top Ashlyn had to lean up against the wall for a minute because Ali had turned into dead-weight. She was passed out completely.

Ashlyn carried her into her room and laid her on the bed. She began getting out a pair of shorts and a t-shirt to put on Ali. She began muttering out loud, “well this is normally not how I get a girl out of their clothes. I’m sure Ali will think I’m a stalker or something now” as she stripped her.   
Ashlyn tried not to stare at Ali’s toned muscles or her bare chest that were now visible. -Boy, this girl sure knows how to get to me, whether it’s bad or good.- Once she slipped her clothes on her, she laid two aspirin and a bottle of water on the nightstand next to Ali with a note that read ‘You’ll need this in the morning, Princess -Ash.’

Ashlyn laid down and set her alarm for four hours from then. She fell asleep immediately, thinking about the brown-eyed beauty that was one door over.


	2. The Morning After

The morning came way too early for Ashlyn. At 6AM she hit her alarm and rolled over to think about what happened the night before. That’s when her heart started pounding and she shot up out of bed. _Ali Krieger is sleeping in her bed. What the hell is she supposed to do now?_

 

Ashlyn decides to get out of bed and follow her daily routine, which starts with a five mile run around the town. Unlike other days, as she runs today, her mind is going a million miles a minute. Most thought seem to be revolving around one particular person—Ali.

Time seemed to be moving faster than normal for Ashlyn. In what felt like twenty minutes, she was finished with her run. She sprinted up the stairs of her bar and slowly opened the door to her home, not knowing what to expect on the other side.

 

Everything was quiet. Nothing seemed changed.

 

She peered into her bedroom and saw that Ali was still sleeping soundly. She decided to move to the next part of her workout, which was a door down. Ashlyn had at least twenty-five different machines set up in her home. All of which she liked to use after her morning jog.

 

An hour and a half later, she walked to her coffee pot and changed the settings to two cups. It had been way too long since she had made a cup of coffee for another woman. As she starts to think about her last relationship, she realizes just how bad she needs a shower. As nice as her guest shower is, all of her stuff is in her bathroom. This poses an issue.

 

She looks back at her bed. _Oh good, she’s still asleep._ Ashlyn doesn’t think she’s ever walked slower or been this quiet in her whole life.

As she gets to the door, Ali shifts in her sleep and wakes up. Luckily for Ali, Ashlyn doesn’t notice and starts to strip off her cutoff. There is only a Nike sports bra and pair of shorts that separate reality from imagination. Ali can’t quit looking at the girl. ‘She’s so beautiful,’ she thinks as she sees her rippling back muscles and her strong arms move quickly and quietly around the bathroom. Then Ashlyn shuts the door and Ali hears the water turn on.

 

Ali didn’t move as she looked at the room around her. It was simple and nice. There was a beach theme, even though there isn’t any beach close to Washington D.C. She wonders where Ashlyn is from and suddenly wants to know everything about her. Ali sees a surfboard leaned against the wall and pictures sitting on all surfaces in the room. She wants to get up and explore more, but sees her clothes on the floor, which momentarily stuns her.

“What happened last night? Why are my clothes on the floor? What am I wearing now?” she mumbles to herself. When she reaches down, she’s glad to find that she is clothed. The clothes are baggy on her and smell like fresh-cut grass and sunshine. This is what she imagines Ashlyn smells like and it seems to calm her mind.

Just as she calms herself, the water shuts off and she begins to freak out again.

 

When Ashlyn comes out, Ali flicks her eyes shut. Ashlyn, however, didn’t miss this action and smiled.  

 

Ashlyn walks to the kitchen and pours two cups of hot coffee. Since she knows that Ali is awake, she yells, “Hey Princess, I know you’re awake. How do you like your coffee?” What she sees next, she thinks she could wake up to every morning and be okay with.

 

Ali drags out of the room, swearing under her breath, and sticking her hair into a messy bun. Her eyes are squinty but she seems like she’s been awake for a while now. “Very light and sugary,” she replies as sits at your bar table and watches you fix her drink and yours.

“Make yourself at home,” Ashlyn says just to give Ali a hard time. Ali’s cheeks immediately flush. Then she starts talking.

 

“Um, so I’m really sorry about last night for multiple reasons. I was in a mood when I showed up at your door and I should have never said those things. You didn’t deserve that. On top of all that, I got really drunk and you let me stay at your place. I don’t think I can repay you, but I sure want to try. Let me-“

“Al, it’s fine.” Ali smirked at the use of the nickname. “I understand, ok? I never meant to make you feel uncomfortable at the bar. I guess I need to watch how much I look at my customers. And as far as sleeping here goes, that’s fine too. I didn’t have plans anyway.”

“Well, let me change that. Please let me thank you for what you’ve done for me. Let me take you to lunch. My treat. Please.”

 

With those big brown eyes and lip sticking out, there was no way Ashlyn could say anything but yes.

 

“Um Ashlyn,” Ali began, “how did I get into these clothes last night?”

It was now Ashlyn’s turn to blush. “Well, uh, I-I kinda had to take off your clothes and uh, put some of mine on you. You were kind of out of it last night.”

“Good thing you said I wasn’t your type or I might be embarrassed,” Ali teased.

“Yeah, good thing.” As much as Ashlyn didn’t want to think about it, she had always felt a certain pull for the girl sitting across from her. She would never act on it though.

 

“Hey Ali, do you want to borrow more clothes, or are you going to wear last night’s outfit?”

“Oh. If you don’t mind, can I borrow more. Do you have any smaller clothes. Not that you’re big, I just-“

Ashlyn began laughing. “Yes, Al, you can borrow some smaller clothes.” Let me go grab them and then we’ll head out.

 

Ali smiled and watched her walk away. She couldn’t help but think about all the places that this budding friendship could go, but she wanted to find out. She was ready to learn about the golden-eyed girl who sat at the bar every night. She was interested in someone else and this began to break her routine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all of the positive feedback! Hope you like this chapter ☺


	3. Let's Get to Know Eachother

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here's the apology lunch!

Ali decided that she wanted to take Ashlyn to her favorite lunch spot, the Sunrise Diner. If she was going to be honest, this was the place that made her feel home. There were not many places that actually gave her that feeling anymore, so the fact that she was taking Ashlyn here meant something, even if she didn’t know it yet.

 

When they got inside Rachel, the waitress, said, “Hello Ali! Hello Ashlyn! Nice to see you both here again, I’ve missed you guys. I actually didn’t know that you guys knew each other.”

Ali looked at Ashlyn in surprise. “You’ve been here before?”

“Well, yeah,” Ashlyn replied, “this is the best place to eat in all of D.C. I usually come here every Tuesday for lunch.”

_No fucking way. How is that even possible? I finally talk to this interesting woman and she loves MY favorite diner._

 

When they sat down Ali just stared at Ashlyn until the waitress came back and took drink orders. Ali took a peach tea while Ashlyn decided on a coke.

“What’s wrong, Princess, you haven’t stopped staring at me since we sat down?”

“Nothing, it’s just weird that we both love this hole-in-the-wall diner.”

Ashlyn just shrugged.

 

“Hey Ash, can I ask you something?” Ashlyn smiled at the name and urged her to go on. “Why have you been so nice to me when I’ve been such an ass to you?”

Ashlyn thought for a second. “Do you want the truth or the semi-truth?”

Ali became tense, but said the truth.

“You come to my bar all the time and I care about my customers. That’s the simple answer. The long version? Well that’s complicated. I see you at my bar every time you’re there and you look sad. I never know if it’s because you are just upset about something or if that was your personality. I wanted to find out, but that’s an awkward question to ask. Instead of asking you what’s wrong, I decided to just keep my distance until you either wanted to talk to me or something came up. You kinda intrigue me. You have a ton of friends, but you’re always sad. I don’t know that any of that made sense.”

Ali blushed. “I mean it makes sense as to why you’ve never talked to me, but it doesn’t answer why you’re nice to me?”

 “Oh, my bad. Uh, I don’t know exactly. I guess I just like to give people second chances. Everyone makes mistakes, so I believe everyone deserves another chance.”

“You’re kind of amazing, Ashlyn.”

“Yeah, I know,” she laughed, “people tell me that all of the time.”

 “Will you answer another question?”

“Sure, on one condition: you answer five from me.”

After a bit of back and forth arguing that five was too many, Ali finally agreed. She started getting nervous then. _What could she possibly want to ask me?_ Her heart beat faster and her palms got sweaty. Before anyone could ask anything, the food arrived. It looked delicious. Ali ordered a grilled chicken salad and Ashlyn ordered a roast beef sandwich (after Ali told her to get it). Neither woman looked up until they were done eating.

 

“Mmm, I’m stuffed,” Ali said.

“That was so good! I guess it’s time for your question now.”

 _Shit._ “Where did you grow up? I know it wasn’t here because of your bedroom.”

“Really, that was your question?” Ashlyn’s whole demeanor changed at that question. “Okay, so I grew up in Satellite Beach, FL. It’s just a small town so probably never heard of it.” _Short and to the point, that’s not like Ashlyn._

“Why’d you move here?”

“That’s more than one question, sorry Princess. My turn!” Ali cringed. _This girl’s got something to hide,_ Ashlyn thought.

 

“We’ll start easy. You don’t seem uptight, so why did you fuss at me so much when I sent drinks over to you and your team?”

Ali giggled, “you call that starting easy? I don’t really know where to begin. I’ve kind of never told anyone this. You’re a complete stranger basically and I feel safe telling you for some reason.”

“Al, you don’t ha-“

“Please let me tell you. I want to tell someone.”

“Okay, but let’s go somewhere more private. Let’s take a walk.”

 

Ashlyn tried to pay the bill, but Ali told her it was to say thank you. They didn’t talk until they were outside and walking. Ashlyn kept looking at Ali, waiting on her to start. Finally, she did.

“That night I was in a terrible mood after the game. I shouldn’t have been after a win, but I was. Ash, I used to love soccer and any competition in general. I don’t now and I don’t know why. I don’t want to go out because I don’t care about the win anymore. I think that I have won so much, that I don’t feel anything anymore. And after a win literally everything is the same. We sign autographs, we go home, then we go out. How awful is it that I don’t care about basically my whole life anymore?” Ali dropped her head in defeat.

“Alex look at me.” Ali didn’t budge so Ashlyn lifted her chin with her hand. Their eyes finally met. “It’s okay to feel like that. People get bored with their lives sometimes and need to switch it up. You’re completely normal. I’m assuming you’ve been playing your whole life, so I don’t blame you for being bored. I don’t think anyone could blame you.”

Ali kept her eyes locked on the taller girls’. She really couldn’t think of anything to say in that moment so she just hugged her. This took Ashlyn by surprise; that was actually the last thing she expected. When Ali hugged her, she realized that she wanted to be close to Ashlyn as much as she could.

“Hey Ashlyn, I know I sucked last night, but do you think that we could be friends? Like for real friends? I need to go back to my apartment, but I want to hang out with you again. If that’s ok with you,” Ali mumbled.

“Sure, anything for you.”


	4. Club 99

After Ali and Ashlyn exchanged numbers, there was a week of radio silence. Ali didn’t want to make the first move to talk and Ashlyn didn’t know what to say. They each hoped that the other would send a message, but it never happened. Finally, on the day of Ali’s game, she got the message she had been waiting for.

Ash: Good luck, princess J

Ali smiled. Her stomach jumped with excitement.

Alex: Thanks! Maybe we’ll come to the bar tonight…

Ali knew good and well that tonight if they won, they wouldn’t be going to Ash’s bar. They went last week and the team never goes to the same bar twice in a row. Crystal says that it’s bad juju if they do. Apparently they were going to this full on club in the middle of downtown Washington; it was supposed to be packed.

 

The Spirit won without a problem. They beat Houston 2-0 and were ending the season undefeated. Yet again, Ali didn’t care. She wanted to get out of the stadium as fast as she could. Before she made her way to her car, she heard her name being shouted. She turned at the familiar voice.

“Ashlyn?”

Next to Ashlyn stood a beautiful blonde with blue eyes. Ali immediately grew stiff. Her stomach flipped, and not in a good way this time.

“Hey Al! Hope you don’t mind, but I wanted to see you play in person.”

The two shared a quick hug (much to Ali’s displeasure) and Ali said, “you know if you want to watch the game I can get you in free, right?”

“Yeah, but I wanted to surprise you.” Ashlyn gave one of her famous dimpled smiles. “Oh Ali, this is Whitney. She’s my best friend in the entire world.” Ali visibly relaxed at those words. The two waved at each other.

“I’ve heard a lot about you Ali. I really like the story about you yelling at her. Anyone that gives Ash a hard time is fine by me!” Whitney said. Ashlyn smacked her friend on the arm.

“Well, I just wanted to stop by and say hello. Also, Whit’s been asking to meet you so I had to get her off my chest. I’ll let you go and see you around!” As soon as they turned to leave, Ali let the words flow.

“W-wait! Um, do you guys maybe want to go out with us tonight? We’re going to Club 99.”

Ashlyn yelled back across the lot that she would text her. Ali was disappointed. She had tried not to think too much about the blonde haired Florida girl, but that wasn’t going well. On top of all that, she showed up at her game. _That was so not planned._ Ali didn’t know what this girl was doing to her, but she wanted more. More texts. More hugs. More everything.

 

At 12:30AM, Ali started to give up hope. She thought that Ashlyn had forgotten all about her. Ali dressed up extra tonight just to get Ashlyn’s attention, but it seemed that it was all for nothing. She started out drinking slow, but the more she checked her phone, the more she decided to throw back shots. All of a sudden, a pair of arms wrapped around her. _Ashlyn,_ or at least that’s what she thought. She didn’t even look back, she just swayed to the music. Once the hands started trying to grab more, she pulled away. That’s when reality hit and she knew it wasn’t her friend behind her. She pushed and pulled but the guy behind her wouldn’t let her go.

“Hey dick, let this pretty lady go. Now.” The drunk man took one look up, muttered something under his breath, and walked away.

“Ashlyn!” Ali hugged her so tight, “you saved me…again!”

“Sorry, I had to drop Whitney off at the airport. Glad to see you didn’t miss me too much though.”

When Ali finally focused her eyes, she noticed something was off about the usually happy girl. Ashlyn looked dressed to impress with a black button up, maroon tie, and black skinny jeans, but something didn’t feel right. She looked higher and saw the reason why. Where there was typically a dimpled grin that reached beautiful hazel eyes, was turned into pursed lips and a stern look.

“Ash, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing.”

“I may be drunk, but I can still see unhappiness on your face.”

“Drop it Ali. I’m going to grab a drink; do you want anything?”

“I want you to tell me what’s wrong.”

And with that, Ashlyn walked to the bar. She left Ali standing in the middle of a crowed dance floor alone. Ali felt more alone than she possibly had ever experienced before. Ashlyn on the other hand, was feeling another emotion: anger. She had showed up at a club that she hated, to hang out with a girl that she secretly was crushing on, and found her dancing on a man while he groped her. Ashlyn knew that Ali was straight, but she still didn’t like seeing it. This wasn’t her ideal Saturday night.

 

After about 10 minutes of Ashlyn standing at the bar, the bartender finally took her order. Ashlyn ordered three shots of Jack and a beer when a voice starting talking behind her. “Hey hot stuff, you want to get laid tonight,” a beautiful brunette said. Ashlyn looked past the girl and saw Ali in the background dancing again. _If she can dance with someone, so can I._  She downed the three shots and replied, “I don’t know yet, but how about I show you a good time on the dance floor.”

Ashlyn let the girl to the dance floor and immediately the girl was grinding on her. While this was happening, all she could do was look at Ali and bump along to the music. Crystal pointed over to where Ashlyn was and Ali got a glimpse of the two girls. She was horrified. The scene in front of her made her sober up extremely fast. The only thing that she wanted to do was leave.

“Hey, Crys, I think I’m done for the night. I’m going to call a taxi and head to the apartment.”

“Are you sure? Are you okay, girl, you look a little pale?”

“Yeah I’m fine, I just think the alcohol kicked in.”

Ali looked back once more at Ashlyn and walked away. She couldn’t watch another girl dancing on the her. She felt a pull to Ashlyn and wanted to tell her so badly, but if Ashlyn wanted another girl, then Ali would bury her feelings. When Ali walked away, Ashlyn noticed. She saw the brown-eyed girl take an upset glance her way and then leave. Ashlyn’s stomach flipped; _what am I doing_ , she thought. She was literally at the club for one reason and one reason only. That reason just ran out of the club.

 

Ashlyn made a split decision and rushed out of the club’s doors. She needed to tell Ali how she felt and fast, before she lost her.


	5. What do we do?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Running away from your fears is never easy, so why try?

Ali’s POV

Ali woke up the next morning with a hangover. She knew in that moment that she had drank way too much the night before. Ali thought back to the night before and buried her head in her pillow. Last night was awful. 

 

**As she ran out of the door of the club, she turned right, right into the most muscular man she had ever seen.**

**“Oh shit! Sorry, I wasn’t watching where I was going.”**

**“You’re good, little lady. Say, aren’t you that really good soccer player?” He had the thickest New Jersey accent.**

**“I play soccer, yeah.”**

**“Were ya headed to? Maybe I can walk you there since it’s late.”**

**Ali looked back to find no one following her so she agreed. In all honesty, she wanted Ashlyn to chase after her but she knew that wasn’t going to happen. That stuff only happened in fairytales and she wasn’t the fairytale type.**

**As they walked down the street, Ali began talking to this large man about her life and situation.**

**“Ya know, in all honesty, you should go after her. I’m sure she just got all jealous when she saw you with that man.”**

**“There's no way,” Ali stated confidently, “she barely even knows me and she said I wasn’t her type. I’m sure she just came to the bar to be nice.”**

**“Listen Ali, if you could get feelings for her in the matter of a week, so could she. That’s what it sounds like to me. But you’re right, she didn’t come running, so she might not. Hypothetically, what if she did run after you and she saw you with me? That’s two guys in one night. Maybe she’s scared. I would be if I liked a guy and wasn’t sure he liked guys.”**

**Ali was shocked. “Wait, you like men?”**

**The muscular man laughed. “Yup! I do. You probably should have asked that when I asked you to leave with me. You need to be more careful.”**

**“You look trustworthy enough. Anyway, this is me. Thanks for walking me home.”**

**They said their goodbyes and went separate ways. Ali, however, wasn’t done for the night.**

 

Ali got up from bed and went about doing her morning routine. Brush teeth, eat breakfast, call Kyle. Kyle, Ali’s older brother, is one person she could trust with anything in this world. He would know exactly what to say about last night. After some catching up, Ali starting telling Kyle about last night.

“So after the gay muscle man, who you would like by the way, dropped me off, I kinda did something stupid…I showed up at my ex’s house.”

“Excuse me? You did what? And with that dick?”

“I told him I wanted to get back-“

“Please tell me that you’re not getting back together with him..”

“I’m not Kyle. He cheated on me and that’s the end of our relationship. I just wanted someone to mess around with. I really wanted to find out if Ashlyn was attracted to me, but she was all over another girl. I think we’re destined to be just friends. I have to be okay with that ”

“Or not. You haven’t even talked to her. Either do that or move on.”

Ali agreed and they got off the phone. She didn’t know exactly what to do with the blonde, but she needed to figure it out soon. As of now, she just wanted to go for a run. She put on her leggings, grabbed a bottle of water, and started out of the door.

 

 

Ashlyn’s POV

Ashlyn never went to sleep that night. She stayed up all night thinking about how confused she was yesterday. She couldn’t get the beautiful Ali Krieger off of her mind, but she knew that she needed to. Ali Krieger was NOT a possibility. 

 

**Ashlyn tried to run out of the club when Crystal stopped her.**

**“Ashlyn, I want you to think about what you’re about to do. Ali is my best friend but she just got out of a serious relationship, she doesn’t need complicated anymore. I can see how you look at her. Just don’t fucking her up anymore.”**

**Ashlyn didn’t know what to do. She liked Ali, but she just met her. Did she even have the right to run after her? She made a split second decision: she ran.**

**When she got out of the club, Ali was no where in sight. Ashlyn spent the night roaming the streets searching for any sign of her. Finally around 4am she gave up. She sat on the nearest curb and starting thinking about everything that had previously happened.**

**After an hour a man walked from across the coffee shop and handed her a cup.**

**“Here ya go little lady, you look like you need this. Rough night?”**

**“Thanks and yeah, it didn’t go like I wanted it to.”**

**Wanna talk about it?”**

**“I don’t really know you, but you did bring me coffee so I guess that’s a good sign. Are you busy?”**

**The muscular man shook his head and Ashlyn explained her situation.**

**“Believe it or not, I think I talked to the girl you’re talking about. Ali Krieger?” Ashlyn nodded, astonished. “Yea, her story was about like yours. Except you chose to dance with another girl over her. She’s confused but she likes you a lot. She sounded hopeless though, like you couldn’t possiblyhv feelings for her. I think you guys need to talk.”**

**Ashlyn agreed but she told him that she didn’t know where Ali lived. The man, Ashlyn found out his name was Joey, said he walked her home and he would show her. He had one stipulation: come back to the coffee shop later this week and tell him what happened.**

When Joey dropped Ashlyn off, he wished her good luck and left. She stood at the apartment door for what felt like a century, but in all honesty it was about 10 minutes. Just when she went to knock on Ali’s door, it flew open. She had never seen anyone look so gorgeous at 8am and this stunned her yet again. It was just a little over a week ago when she recalled Ali like this in her home. Those butterflies she had then came back all over again.

“We need to talk,” Ashlyn said. Ali nodded in agreement and held the door open for Ashlyn to walk inside.

 


	6. The Conversation

Ali walked over to the counter and made two cups of coffee. She didn’t want to turn around to face the blonde, but knew she had to. When she finally looked around the corner, Ashlyn was standing next to one of the shelves on the wall looking at pictures. Ashlyn didn’t flinch when she felt the soccer stars’ eyes on her. “You look happy in these,” she stated expecting no answer. Ashlyn carefully looked at all of the pictures in the room before sitting at the kitchen table.

Ali sat and handed her the coffee and they grazed hands. A shot of electricity went up both of their arms and they searched into one another’s eyes for answers. Ali pulled away quickly. _Of course,_ Ashlyn thought, _why would she be into me. I knew it._ As if Ali was able to sense the inner dialogue in Ashlyn’s head, she reached over and grabbed her forearm and squeezed. This gave Ashlyn the courage to begin talking about why she appeared at the door of Ali’s home.

“Alex, we need to talk about last night. About the club, about after the club, all of it. We haven’t known each other long, but I want an honest conversation. I think we both deserve that.”

“Okay, let me ask you a question. Why did you come to the cub and then ignore me all night for that other girl?”

Ashlyn didn’t waste any time in answering. “I went to the club for you. Only you. I didn’t care about seeing anyone else.” Ali looked skeptical, so Ashlyn continued. “Al, I showed up at the club because I wanted to see you and spend time with you. That was my plan anyway. Then I showed up and you were all over that guy and I couldn’t focus on anything after that.”

“Ash, I was drunk. I honestly thought he was someone else.”

“Who?” Ali automatically blushed at this statement.

“You.”

“Wh-What?”

“I was drunk. I thought you were behind me, Ash. I wanted to dance with you and only you.”

“You said I wasn’t your type?”

“Oh my gosh, Ashlyn, I said that when I was trying to start and win an argument! You’re the definition of my type. The more I see you, the more I just want to kiss you.” Ashlyn didn’t need to hear anymore. She stood up, walked to the next seat over, and placed her hand passionately on Ali’s cheek. She looked her straight into the eye and gently put her lips on Ali’s. Ali melted at the contact. This was what she wanted and now knew it without any doubt.

Ashlyn began to pull away but Ali wasn’t having any of it. She put her hands behind Ashlyn’s neck and dragged her back in. They stayed their kissing until they were both out of breath. Ali whispered, “that was the best first kiss.”

“Oh so there are going to be more where that came from?” Ashlyn said with a smirk.

“Shut up and kiss me again.”

 

After a while, Ali pulled away this time. “Ash, I think I need to tell you something else about last night. Well, a couple of things.” Ashlyn looked worried but ultimately agreed and placed a soft kiss to Ali’s cheek urging her to continue.

“Umm, so, I got really jealous when I saw you dancing with that really attractive girl. Like really jealous. That’s why I walked out. But then, after this really nice man walked me home, I went to my ex’s house.” Ashlyn had a blank look on her face, but deep down her stomach began churning expecting where this conversation was going. “His name is Josh and he is a major jerk. He cheated on me multiple times before I found out. I stayed with him for three more months because we had been through everything together. Three years of history. It wasn’t until the last week we were together that I finally realized that I didn’t love him. Being with him was a routine.”

Ali paused to catch her breath. She looked at Ashlyn’s kind eyes and she felt safe. She continued. “So last night I showed up at his house looking for, um, comfort. When I got there and he opened the door, I realized the mistake I had made. He wasn’t what I wanted or needed. He told me that he missed me and made a lot of slipups…”

“You went back to him?”

“No, that’s the thing. I went there to mess around or hook up or whatever, but I couldn’t bring myself to go inside. I couldn’t do it because I wanted you instead. I knew that you would say that I deserved better or something deep along those lines. I left because I deserve better and you’re the best person I have ever met.”

Ashlyn finally let out a sigh that she had been holding in since Ali’s story started. She couldn’t tell Ali what to do, but she was glad that whatever might of happen last night, didn’t.

“Give me a chance to show you that I can be better than you’ve seen. Let me show you the real me. Please.”

“No.” Ali’s heart dropped immediately. She dropped her head in defeat. _I’ve lost her and I never even had her,_ Ali though to herself. “No because I know who you are Alex. I knew that you had a beautiful soul the day you woke up in my apartment. I hear a lot and see a lot in the bar. I hear you helping your friends with their issues. I see you watching out for your drunken teammates. I don’t need to see you any better than you are because I think that you’re great already.”

That wasn’t what Ali was expecting. She expected flat out rejection after Ashlyn’s initial no. “Can we go out and see where it leads? No pressure,” Ali stated.

“Sure, but I’m really hoping that it goes well. I feel a pull towards you, Al. I can’t stop thinking about you and I don’t want to stop.” Ali kissed Ashlyn and it elicited a moan. “You wanna go to out with me Friday?”

Ali agreed and they set the time. Ashlyn kissed Ali’s forehead and left. She had a delivery coming to the bar and she had to get back.

She felt more hopeful than she had in a long time and it was all because of one woman—Ashlyn. She appeared out of nowhere and flipped her world upside down. She was scared about being hurt again, but she knew that her happiness was at stake and she was willing to give love another shot.


	7. Date Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The date is finally here! Will it go as planned?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the kind words and positive comments! Hope you enjoy!

Ashlyn went back to the bar with a huge grin on her face. As soon as she walked through the door, Phil noticed that she was different.

“What’s got you all excited boss? It wouldn’t be the reason you weren’t here to sign for the delivery, was it?”

“Shit, I’m sorry you had to come in to sign for it! I really thought I’d be here.”

“It’s okay as long as you tell me what happened.”

Ashlyn began telling the story and Phil was ecstatic it had been a long time since Ashlyn had been truly  interested in another woman. She had her heart broken years ago and hasn’t been willing to open up her heart again. Maybe Ali Krieger was just the woman to make her fall in love again.

 

Ashlyn went up to her apartment over the bar and threw herself on the couch. It had been an extremely long couple of days for the girl and she needed rest before the bar opened. Before she fell asleep, her phone rang with a familiar tone. “Hey Nik, what’s up?” Niki was one of her best friends. They met through a mutual friend and had an instant connection. Niki told Ashlyn that she was heading down from New York this weekend and planned on stopping by. Of course, Ashlyn offered her guest room with open arms hoping that Niki would get a chance to meet the girl that was slowly changing her world.

Friday couldn’t come fast enough for either girl, but especially for Ali. She felt like this week was dragging by. Practice had even been going slow for her and she normally thinks it’s over too fast. Every time she kicked a ball or made a tackle, she thought of Ashlyn’s lips on hers. She wanted to see the blonde more than anything and to get that electric feeling again.

She planned on meeting Ashlyn around 6:30, which gave her more than enough time after practice to get ready. She and the blonde had been texting on and off throughout the week about the upcoming plans. All Ashlyn would tell her was to dress comfortable. _Easy for her to say, she looks good always._

 

As the night went on, Ali had no idea what to wear. She resorted to her go-to—Kyle. He would know exactly what to say in this situation.

“Hey Babes!”

“Hey Ky! I need some help!”

What’s up, doll?”

“Remember that bar girl? The one who I kinda fell for? Well we have a date in like an hour and I have no idea what to wear. She said dress comfortable, what does that even mean?”

“First of all, thanks for updating me. NOT. Second, wear your black skinny jeans and white baggy t-shirt. Also wear your white Chucks. Oh baby, she’ll love to see you in that outfit. She’ll be staring at your ass all night!”

Ali agreed and told Kyle she’d call him in the morning. She was officially ready for this date with the kindest bar owner she had ever met. She slipped her clothes on and fixed her hair. As time went on, her nerves started picking up. “Ali get yourself together, she likes you.” _But seriously you were a jerk to her and she deserves better. How could she even like—_ before she could finish the thought, her doorbell rang. She walked to the door and opened it to find the beautiful blonde looking straight at her.

Ashlyn was wearing a fitted black button-up with her sleeves rolled up her bicep showing off her full sleeve. She had on fitted jeans and black boots peering out of them. Ali couldn’t stop looking.

“Alex, you look wow, you’re the most stunning woman I’ve ever seen.” She looked Ali up and down, noticing the black jeans that wrapped tightly around Ali’s lower section. “Umm, these are for you,” she said and held out a dozen purple lilies.

“Ash, these are beautiful! No one has ever gotten me flowers on a first date before.”

“You deserve the best and I plan on showing you that tonight. I would love to stand here and stare at you all night, but we have places to be!”

“Let’s do this then,” Ali said as she grabbed her purse and followed Ashlyn out of the door. When they walked outside Ali expected to see a taxi, but instead she saw a smooth navy blue Jeep with its top down. “Ash is this yours?”

“Uh yeah, it’s my baby. I only bring it out on special occasions.” Ali just looked onward as Ashlyn opened her door and helped Ali climb into the seat.

 

The ride began as a comfortable silence until Ali’s curiosity got the best of her.

“Where are we going?”

“Do you trust me?”

“I mean you let me crash at your place when I was passed out, I guess I kinda have to trust you after that.”

“Exactly. So it’s a secret.”         

 

As the ride continued, Ali wouldn’t stop asking. “C’mon please. I’ll do anything you want, just tell me.”

“Anything?”

Ali gulped thinking of what the blonde might have in store. “Yeah, anything.”

“Nope, not good enough,” she laughed with a smirk.

Ali laid her hand on Ashlyn’s leg and the larger woman’s face flushed. Ali giggled and continued to look out of the window humming to the music on the radio.

“Okay Princess, we’re here.” Ali looked around and didn’t see much.

“Uh where is here exactly?”

Ashlyn laughed and opened her car door. She walked over and grabbed Ali’s hand to help her out. When she tried to let go, the brunette just held on tighter. Ashlyn smiled and looked at the woman who was making her more nervous than she had been in a long time. She felt like the luckiest girl alive to be walking hand-in-hand with the one and only Ali Krieger.

As they turned the corner, Ali knew exactly where they were. Along every street was a different food truck. Ali had heard about this one night a month that all the different food vendors come together in one part of town to throw a huge party and let people eat for free. Everyone talked about it, but hardly anyone knew where it was.

“Ash! How did you know where this was?”

“Is this a big deal?”

“Uh yeah! Everyone hears about this thing but no one knows how to go to it!”

The blonde chuckled. “Oh, uh, I guess I just have some pull.”

Ali and Ashlyn walked around the blocks until they had seen everything offered. When they decided on what type of food they wanted, Ali sat and Ashlyn went up to order it. As she was watching the tattooed girl, another blonde came and sat beside her.

“Hey girl, are you here with Ashlyn?”

“Yeah, how do you know her?”

“I’m one of the vendors at this place. I’m sure she hasn’t told you, but Ashlyn actually runs this operation. She hired vendors to show appreciation to the public and then it turned into a once a month thing. You’re lucky, she’s never brought another girl here before. She likes to stay anonymous and do things for people, but sometimes I think she needs a pat on the back. That’s why I’m telling you. Treat her right and she’ll treat you like a queen.” With that, the blonde left before she was seen by Ashlyn.

Before Ashlyn got to sit down, Ali stood and wrapped her into a hug. “Thanks for bringing me here,” she mumbled into the woman’s chest. Ashlyn sat down the food and hooked her arms around the smaller woman. When Ali let go, she grabbed Ashlyn’s face and eagerly took in her lips.

As they broke apart, Ashlyn was unsure of what to say; she had never been kissed like that in a place that meant so much to her. She looked around and took in her surroundings, not wanting to miss a thing. She glanced at Ali once again and gave her a soft kiss on the nose. “You keep surprising me, Krieger. Let’s eat before it gets cold.”

 

After they finished, they wound up at Ashlyn’s bar for the rest of the night. What was supposed to be a quick trip to sign a paper turned into a night’s worth of trouble. When they got there, there was a rather large group of obnoxious frat boys hanging around the door of the bar. As soon as the duo got close to the door, the boys started whistling and catcalling Ali.

Ashlyn shut that situation down immediately by grabbing her hand and leading her across the bar to Phil.

“Ash, those idiots have been doing that all night.”

“I think it’s time security escorts them off the property then, don’t you think?”

Phil smiled and had a couple of the security men wrangle the boys and lead them out of the bar. Next, Ashlyn had to deal with a very angry delivery man. It seemed as if Ashlyn was supposed to automatically know that her order was going to show up a week early.

As if this wasn’t enough, Ashlyn saw a pipe leak and had to assess that. “Al, look I’m really sorry but I have to fix this before it floods the whole bar.”

“Babe, it’s ok. I wanna stick around and help you if you’ll let me.”

Ashlyn smiled a huge dimpled grin, “You just called me babe…”

“Is that ok?”

“More than.”

Ashlyn took Ali up to her apartment and they both changed into Ashlyn baggy old clothes. When they walked back down, Ashlyn laid under the sink and Ali was placed to her left handing her the tools she asked for. It started out innocent, but Ali kept sneaking glances at the blonde’s strong hands working nimbly to fix the leak. She wanted those hands on her.

“Alex hand me the wrench.” No answer. She peered out from under the sink and Ali was nowhere in sight.

She looked for the wrench and it was gone too. _Where the hell did that girl go?_ Before she got the chance to look any farther, two hands covered her eyes. Ali roughly whispered in her ear, “guess who, Stud...”

Ashlyn flipped around to face Ali and the brunette started laughing.

“What?”

“Oh Ash, you have…dirt under…your eyes!” She choked out while laughing herself into a fit. “Here let me get it off.” Ali grabbed a towel and slowly starting wiping the dirt and dust off of the taller girls’ face. Ashlyn stood as still as she could just looking into Ali’s eyes. She doesn’t think she’s ever seen such a fire in someone’s eyes. Her eyes then drop down to Ali’s lips. Ali notices and reaches up on her tip-toes to capture the blonde’s lips. Before they start to get carried away, Phil walks in the back and coughs.

“Hey boss, how’s that leak coming along? Looks like you’ve got a handle on things,” he smiled.

“Uh yeah, doing just fine. I’ve got it stopped for tonight so I’ll just come back down tomorrow and long-term fix it. I need to drop Alex back off at her place.” Ali’s face visibly dropped at this statement.

 

Ashlyn kissed Ali on the forehead and grabbed her hand. She walked Ali to the car and helped her in. The couple held hands the whole way back and talked about insignificant things in their lives. When they ended up at Ali’s house, Ashlyn walked her to the door.

“Do you want to come in?”

“I better not.”

“Oh ok…I guess this is it then.”

Ashlyn grabbed Ali by the waist and pulled her in for a kiss. She had a great time, even though it turned out different than she expected. She definitely wanted another date though; in fact, she wanted more than a date. She wanted Ali to be hers.

“Baby, this isn’t it, it’s only goodnight. I plan on spending a lot of time over here if you’ll let me.”

“Be mine Ashlyn Harris,” Ali said as she pulled the larger girl in for a hug.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Ashlyn placed a kiss to Ali’s hair and told her goodnight. She wanted nothing more to stay with the brown-eyed girl, but it was too soon for that.

As Ali fell asleep that night, she couldn’t stop thinking about the tattooed bar owner. Ashlyn was all hers and she planned on letting her know just how lucky she is. _I’m yours, baby, all yours,_ she whispered into the dark before falling asleep on a day that was so not routine.


	8. Background

It had been a few of months since Ali and Ashlyn had started dating. Both women were head over heels for the other. Although getting together was complicated, being together was not. They went on numerous dates and spent all of their downtime together. They learned each other’s likes and dislikes, they told each other all their secrets, and they hung out with each other’s friends.

Ali learned that the blonde loved to draw and took extremely long runs in the morning. Ashlyn learned that when Ali became frustrated, she cussed in German and that she loved reading books at night.

Ashlyn had always had particularly low self-esteem. So characteristically, Ashlyn thought that everything was going too well for the duo and it meant that something bad was going to happen. Doubt was creeping into her head like it always did. That was something she definitely didn’t want to tell Ali.

 

Ali accidently found out that Ashlyn had a lot of anxiety and rough past on one night a month into their relationship.

**“Al, please stop. I don’t want to talk about this right now.”**

**“Babe you could have killed that guy with your stare and you were gripping the table so tight. I was concerned that it would break in half! What the hell was going on?”**

**Ashlyn looked astonished, “did you not hear the way that he was flirting with you and looking at me?”**

**“Uh no, I was too busy looking at my girl.”**

**Ashlyn heard enough; she got up and walked to the kitchen. She couldn’t sit there and listen to Ali tell her that she hadn’t noticed the attractive male hitting on her. _He’s a doctor, for goodness sakes! She should really be with him. I can’t provide for her like he can. Maybe I should tell her that._ Ashlyn continued to work herself into a black hole of self-doubt so she started drawing. **

**Ali had never seen Ashlyn draw, so she knew that the hazel-eyed girl needed a few minutes to think. She sat on Ashlyn’s couch until she believed that they should finally talk.**

**“Babe, talk to me,” Ali walked in and pleaded.**

**“I thought you left. It would be better if you just walked out now.”**

**“Ashlyn Michelle Harris, stop and look at me!” With Ali raising her voice, the uncertain blonde did look up waiting on the inevitable. _This is it, she’s going to break it off now._ “I don’t understand what’s going on in your head so I need you to let me in. Talk to me. Tell me what’s going on in that beautiful brain of yours.” **

**Ashlyn sighed and began talking. “Alex, I’m not good enough for you. That’s it, plain and simple. That doctor…he could take care of you and treat you like a princess. You deserve that.”**

**“Oh baby, you’re all I want. The more I learn about you, the more I see what a kind and caring soul you have. I know it’s only been a month, but I can already see how much you’ve changed my life. I don’t want that to end. I just want to be yours, Ash.”**

**By the end of Ali’s statement, the large tender-hearted girl was in tears. She had tried to hold it together but when Ali leaned in for a hug, Ashlyn broke.**

**“Alex…no one…has ever…stayed…with me,” she choked out. “My dad left when I was still in diapers and my mom drowned her sorrows to cope. She mentally left the day that my dad left. My brother and I bounced around for a while after that. Chris, well he lasted a little longer with me. In high school he started partying really bad and taking pills to deal with his shitty childhood. I couldn’t stay there and let that happen to me too. I moved in with my grandparents and they’ve been the only stable people in my life.”**

**Ali wanted to stop her girlfriend there but she knew she wasn’t done telling her story. She grabbed her hand and squeezed to urge her on.**

**“I had one serious girlfriend in college and she broke my heart. I found her with a baseball player in my bed. I didn’t value myself enough so I got back with her because she said it was a mistake. We lasted a few more months, but I turned to alcohol because I couldn’t deal with my emotions. Whitney finally pulled me out of that. I couldn’t commit myself to anyone after that,” Ali’s heart dropped to her stomach at that statement. If Ashlyn couldn’t commit to anyone, how could she ever commit to her?**

**Ashlyn continued without any prompting. “Baby that’s why you terrify me. When I finally opened my heart up to you the night after the club, I committed myself to you fully. It’s been a month and I’m already falling for you Alex. I saw that guy hitting on you tonight and it reminded me that I could lose you.”**

**“Sweetheart you’re not going to lose me. I’m falling for you too.”**

**“Really?”**

**“Yes! The next time you feel insecure, please tell me. I want you to know that I’m always here and I’m not going anywhere. That girl that left you, she didn’t deserve the wonderful woman you are. You’re mine and don’t forget it.”**

With everything that had happened, Ali knew that she was with the right person. She felt safe with the blonde. She knew that Ashlyn would always be her biggest supporter and right by her side through everything that came her way.

Ashlyn had told Ali about her past and her failures. She eventually found that Ali wasn’t going to leave her side, especially when something was wrong. She had never really fell this hard so fast and she was learning how to talk about those feelings. The one thing that she hadn’t brought up yet was being truly intimate with Ali. Sure, they were emotionally intimate, but not physically, and Ashlyn needed that to happen soon.

The duo had joked about it with their friends present and talked about it with each other, but both women were nervous to make the first move. Ali, usually bold with hitting on people, didn’t want to make the mistake of starting things too early. She had went fast in the past and didn’t want to mess up like that with her blonde. Slow was definitely better.

 

“Alex, let’s go on a date Thursday.”

“Baby you know I have practice then. Morning and night,” she stated a bit annoyed. “And don’t you have that thing at your bar?”

“Yeah but Phil and Tiff are going to watch the bar instead. Please, you’ll have so much fun.”

“I just told you that I have practice.”

“But Al, I don’t ask for much. This is just one practice I need you to miss,” Ashlyn begged.

Ali was over the conversation at this point. “No Ashlyn. That’s the final answer.”

“Okay, fine. I’ll take Whit.” With that Ashlyn said that she had to leave and Ali let her. Arguments weren’t common for the couple, but when they did happen Ashlyn usually ended leaving. She didn’t do arguments well. Most of the time Ali would text her after, but she was feeling particularly stubborn this day.

When Ashlyn walked out of Ali’s apartment, she immediately called Whitney.

“Yo Whit, got any plans on Thursday night?”

“No. What’s the plan? I’ve been excited to come and see you.”

“Well, I was thinking about going to the Redskins game.”

“Yesssssss! I’ll be at your door on Wednesday!”

“This is why you’re my favorite!” Ashlyn said with a grin. “I love you dude, see you then!”

 

As soon as Whitney got off of the phone, she realized what Thursday was. Yeah it was the Redskins game and that was Ash’s favorite professional football team, but it was also the day that her dad left. That’s always the day that Ashlyn tried to have the most fun and stay busy. She couldn’t blame her, but she thought that Ali would have been invited this year. Since the couple had begun dating, Whitney and Ali had become instant friends. She decided to send Ali a quick text to find out what was up.

-Whitney Engen: Hey Kriegs, uh have you talked to Ash today?

-Ali: Yeah why?

-Whitney Engen: She just asked me to do something Thursday and then I realized that it was the day her dad left. I agreed to go but I was wondering if she asked you…

-Ali: SHIT. She wanted to do something but I had practice. I didn’t even let her explain.

-Whitney Engen: Oh. You should text her.

-Ali: How do I fix this Whit?

-Whitney Engen: If you want I can give you my ticket. I can still come down Wednesday and see her then hang out with her the weekend after.

-Ali: You’re the greatest. Sounds like a plan! We’ll work out the deets later.

 

As soon as the text was sent she called Ashlyn, but there was no answer. She got up and went to the bar but Ashlyn wasn’t there. She went to Ashlyn’s upstairs loft, but the blonde didn’t answer. She was getting worried so she walked back down to the bar and sent a couple of texts and called a few more times. Of course, no answer. When she talked to Phil, he said that Ashlyn was upstairs and didn’t want to be bothered.

Ali went home and sent a text apologizing to which she received nothing. She thought her girlfriend may need some time, so she gave up for a while. As it turned out, those hours turned into days and soon it was Thursday. Ali hadn’t heard from Ashlyn, but she knew that she still wanted to be there for the woman. The plan with Whitney was a go.


	9. Touchdown Redskins!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all the positive comments! I'm taking every single one to heart and listening to our thoughts.

Thursday morning came and Ali was moderately nervous to see Ashlyn. She hadn’t even talked to her since the day of the miscommunication. Ali had made sure to clear her plans with her coach and make sure Whitney knew what was going on.

The plan was that Whitney was going to tell Ashlyn that she had to meet up with someone and she wuld meet her at the game. She would get the ticket from Ashlyn and give it to Ali. Then Ali would take a cab to the FedEx Field and surprise Ashlyn. Ali hoped that Ashlyn missed her like she missed the blonde. It had only been a few days but Ali missed her best friend.

Whitney had tried to update Ali every day, but it wasn’t the same as talking to her girlfriend. Whitney said that Ashlyn has a particularly had day when she arrived on Wednesday, but she didn’t offer much more than that. Ali was worried that she messed things up too much to fix; however, she was going to try her hardest.

 

When 1 PM hit, Whitney let Ashlyn know she had to meet someone. Although Ashlyn offered to take her best friend, she finally agreed to just meet her there. She gave Whitney the ticked and proceeded to get ready. The shorter blonde was already decked out in her Kirk Cousins Redskins jersey so that Ashlyn wouldn’t get any ideas. “I’m leaving Ash! I’ll see you around six tonight!”

Whitney left and met Ali at one of the coffee shops on her street.

“Ali, please don’t break her heart. She can’t take another person leaving and she thinks you’re already gone.”

“I promise, Whitney, I won’t. I miss her like hell and I’m scared to lose her. I know it hasn’t been long but I think she’s it for me.”

“I’ll hold you too it. Those are good seats, have fun with her!”

 

Ali finally got to the game about thirty minutes before kickoff. Instead of going straight to her seat, she went to grab a beer from her and Ashlyn.

When she got to the seat, Ashlyn was turned away from her watching a fan obnoxiously trash talking. She turned when she noticed a body plop down beside her. She looked at the brunette with reserved eyes. Ali handed her the drink and looked puzzled.

“Alex—why?”

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I didn’t know what today was. I didn’t know how much it meant to you. I can’t stand the thought of losing you.”

“I guess Whitney told you…”

“She texted me right after you called her.”

Ashlyn turned to the stadium surrounding her. This woman was here by her side after she had ignored her for days. What did she want to do about the situation? As she thought, Ali turned to her and grabbed her chin.

“Ash, let me be here for you today baby. After today, if you don’t want this anymore than you can end it. That’s by no means what I want, but I understand if it’s what you need to do.”

“Ali I want to be with you. Plain and simple. I don’t want to do all this back and forth. I don’t want to worry about you leaving me. I don’t want to miss you like I have this week. And I don’t want you to break my heart. I need to know how commit—”

Ali grabbed the blonde’s hands and held on for dear life. “Ashlyn, you’re it for me. I don’t see my life without you in it. I’m ready for you to meet my family. I want to be an intertwined part of each other. You’re my best friend and my love; I’m ready to tell people. I want to do all of this with _you_ , Ash.”

Ashlyn leaned in and kissed Ali. “Okay,” she said, “I think I’ll be fine with that.” They briefly kissed again before Ashlyn leaned in with a hand pressed to Ali’s lower back and whispered, “Oh by the way, you look really sexy in war paint and Redskins colors. I don’t think I’ve ever been more turned on.” Ali blushed at the statement and a chill was sent through her whole body. At that same moment, the Redskins kicked off the ball and the stadium went wild.

 

It was a close game, but ultimately Washington pulled off the 31-28 win against the Cowboys. Ali had never seen Ashlyn look more alive than the last few plays of the game. Ashlyn shouted "TOUCHDOWN REDSKINS!" as loud as she could and for as long as she could. As the blonde was jumping around and screaming, Ali was looking directly at her. The woman was outgoing yet reclusive. She was bold yet uncertain. She was welcoming yet wary. When Ali saw her, she thought of her future not her past. She realized that she didn’t want to move slow with the loveable woman; she needed to go a speed that was right for them.

“Let’s go home, babe,” the brunette stated when the game was over.

The taller woman turned happily and agreed. “Uh did you drive here or do you want me to drop you off back at your place?”

“I took a cab. I don’t want to go to my apartment though, I want to stay at yours.”

Ashlyn looked at Ali’s brazen face and gulped, “Okay.”

The ride back was long and mostly quiet. After being stuck in the parking lot for over an hour, they were finally making a little progress on the journey home. Ali was singing along to the radio with her hand on Ashlyn’s leg and Ashlyn had a death grip on the steering wheel. Ali looked over concerned when Ashlyn hadn’t moved in a while.

“Babe, are you ok?”

“Yeah, I’m just nervous.”

“For what?”

“Ali we’re sleeping together tonight…I mean…like sleeping…together. Not sleeping together. Or maybe…maybe we are? It’s just been a while, either way you mean the word.” Ali chucked at the blonde getting flustered.

“Let’s just sleep in bed with each other. Let me be there for you tonight and hold you. Sure, I want to get physical with you, but there’s no rush. We’ve got all the time in the world.”

Ali smiled when Ashlyn flashed her dimpled grin. “Okay, yeah, okay that’s fine.”

 

When they got to the apartment Whitney was still up and waiting for Ashlyn to get home. There was shock on her face when both girls walked through the door hand-in-hand. She knowingly smiled to them, “well I was going to ask you how it went, but obviously the answer is really good since Ali is standing next to you.”

“Yeah, uh Whit…can we talk tomorrow? I kinda want to just get in bed.”

“Oh sure, sure. Goodnight you two, use protection!”

“WHITNEY!!” they both shouted as they looked at the doubled over cackling blonde. “Sorry, had to.”

Ashlyn led Ali to the bedroom where she had once stayed drunk and alone. “Boy this feels a little different this time around,” Ali jokingly said.

“You’re telling me! This time I don’t have to lug a 160 lb. body up the stairs,” she teased.

Ali gave her a death glare. “I only weigh 140, you asshole,” and smirked.

“Coulda fooled me, princess! I had to sit you down like three times to readjust.” With that, Ali tackled Ashlyn onto the bed and pinned her down.

“I’ve got you right where I want you now, babe.” As soon as Ali threw that out, Ashlyn flipped them. Ali followed with a string of curse words.

“Yeah you totally had me.” She looked at the girl under her and pecked her lips. Of course, the peck turned into a full blown make-out session a little later. Ashlyn missed the way that Ali’s lips tasted—fresh and sweet—like a strawberry. She liked the way that Ali knew just how to slip her tongue in Ashlyn’s mouth. She definitely liked all of the bodily contact that they had going on under the covers. Ali was now grinding on Ashlyn while they sloppily kissed. Both knew that it wouldn’t get any farther than this with Whitney awake in the net room over, but they enjoyed it until the late hours of the night.

Finally, Ali rolled off of Ashlyn and into her warm embrace. “Wow,” Ali thought aloud, “those felt better than any other before.”

“It’s because we both trust each other fully now. I’m giving you the key to my heart, please don’t break it.”

“I promise.”

And with that, both women fell asleep. Ali was thrown across Ashlyn’s whole body in protection mode. She decided that she would guard the girl’s heart from anything that could possibly come their way.


	10. Control

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here's what you guys have been waiting for!

Ashlyn woke up to a beautiful sight that morning. Ali Krieger was fast asleep laying on the blonde’s tattooed arm with a leg sprawled over her. Brunette hair was thrown everywhere and all Ashlyn seemed to want was to run her fingers through it.

Ashlyn could lay there looking at the futbol star forever. The moment, however, was over rather quickly when she realized that she had to use the bathroom. She gently lifted Ali’s head off of her and slipped out from below her. Ali mumbled something and flipped over, not even waking.

Ashlyn stood there watching for a second before she started her morning routine. She knew Ali had practice at 9 o’clock so she wanted to be sure to wake her up in plenty of time. She started brewing coffee when a door creaked open.

When she turned around, Whitney was smiling at her.

“Have a good night, buttercup?”

“Really, Whit? And yeah I did.”

 “I didn’t hear any moaning so I’ll assume it was just a quiet, snuggley night.”

“Oh my goodness. Yes, nothing happened. Yesterday was great actually.”

“You’re totally in this now, aren’t you?”

“Yup,” Ashlyn said and Whitney smiled from ear to ear. She was so happy for her best friend. Ashlyn was a great person and she deserved the best in life. She had been given a bad situation growing up, but she had made it out. That’s what mattered.

Whitney remembered the young, immature girl that she had known and she was proud to see this side of Ashlyn as well. She walked over and bear hugged Ashlyn. It wasn’t just a hug though, it was much more. It was a best friend putting all of her love and support for years into a minute of physical contact.

When they parted, both friends were teary-eyed.

Whitney decided to break the silence first by saying, “do you want me to make bacon?”

Ashlyn just laughed and agreed, “and I’ll go wake up the princess.”

 

Ali had just rolled over when she felt a soft kiss to her temple. Before she could even open her eyes, a smile crept across her face. When she did decide to show her big brown eyes, she loved the sight in front of her. Ashlyn was sitting beside her with a steaming cup of coffee in her hand.

“For you, beautiful.”

“I think I could wake up to this every day from now on,” Ali mumbled.

“Maybe you should then,” Ashlyn’s face immediately went red when she realized what she said. Sure, her and Ali had been together for a bit, but they were nowhere near the moving in stage.

“Babe, chill. I know what you meant. Sleepover are fine but no uhaling,” Ali giggled.

“Uh yeah,” Ashlyn tried to recover, “that’s exactly what I meant. Let’s go get some bacon.”

“BACON?!”

“Yes sweetheart, Whit is cooking some now,” the blonde said with a sarcastic tone. Ali just shoved her and started sprinting towards the door. “Ya know, there is going to be plenty!”

 

After breakfast Ali went to her apartment and then to practice. Before she knew it, she was home for a late lunch and nap. No matter how used to her schedule she was, she still needed a nap when the season was in mid-swing.

She woke up two hours later with five missed calls from Kyle. Ali immediately thought the worst as she was pressing her brother’s number.

“Kyle, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing darlin’, why?”

“You called me like five times!”

“Yeah I just missed you and I still do, so let’s talk!”

“I hate you,” Ali threw out before going into detail about her relationship with Ashlyn. No matter how much she tried, she couldn’t not talk about the bar owner. Ashlyn had weaseled her way into Ali’s daily routine and managed to change her mind about falling in love. Ali’s next question was not what Kyle was expecting.

“Kyle, how do I get her to fuck me?”

“Wooooooah! Blah, blah, blah. I don’t want to hear about this. I’m your brother, gross.”

“C’mon, I’m serious. It’s going on four months and I’m dying! She’s hot and I have needs.”

“Gag. Well bb, you make yourself irresistible and turn her on. Use that Krieger charm that I know you have. Take her dancing and get as close as you possibly can. Whisper in her ear. I don’t know Al, do your normal stuff.”

Ali thanked Kyle and texted Ashlyn. She wanted to take her out on Saturday. The gentle giant reluctantly agreed only because she usually liked to be in charge. This was different for Ashlyn but she thought that she may enjoy not being in charge for once. Maybe she would let Ali be dominant on the date and she would be dominant in bed.

 

When Ali walked up to Ashlyn’s bar on Saturday night, the blonde’s jaw dropped to the floor. She had expected Ali to look nice, but she was absolutely stunning. The brunette was wearing a tight, short black dress with a slit that went midway up her thigh that accented her booty. As Ashlyn’s eyes traveled down her body, she noticed the four-inch heels that matched Ali’s dress.

“Eyes up here, stud,” Ali giggled.

“Sorry. It’s hard; you’re so beautiful.”

“You don’t look too bad yourself, now let’s get going.” Ashlyn was sporting a light and dark blue checked button-up with faded red jeans rolled up to the ankle and gray Vans. As odd as the outfit sounded, Ali thought it showed off just the right assets. Those arms. Ali couldn’t get enough of those biceps and the tattoos on them.

Ali and Ashlyn went to a restaurant, a bar, and finally to Club 99. Ashlyn was shocked that they wound up back in the same bar that caused a fuss, but Ali insisted that this club was what got them together in the first place. Ashlyn was still unsure, but Ali grabbed her hand, pulled her close, and tugged her inside the club.

When they got inside, the club was packed. Neither woman expected the club to be this full. When they walked to the bar, they ordered four shots and two drinks so that they wouldn’t have to walk back up for a while.

“Babe let’s dance,” Ali begged. Her head was feeling fuzzy but she knew she wanted to get closer to the blonde. She wanted to feel her girlfriend’s hands all over her body.

Ashlyn agreed and soon the two women’s bodies were inseparable. Instead of two independent bodies, they moved and flowed together as one. Sweat was pouring down their bodies after an hour of dancing but neither woman cared because they were pressed tightly on each other.

“Baby you’re getting me so wet,” Ali moaned into the blonde’s ear. Ashlyn didn’t skip a beat when she quipped back “you should let me do something about that when we get out of here.”

Ali looked up into the taller girl’s eyes and they were hungry with want. “One more song, then let’s get out of here,” the brunette shamelessly. It just so happened that the next song was _Control_ by SoMo–perfect. As soon as the song came on, Ali started slow grinding on Ashlyn. The blonde thought that the heat between them might just set on fire. She was so turned on by the shorter woman that it was almost unreal to her. No one had turned her on so much before and she had her fair share of women after the incident in college.

Every bump and brush against Ashlyn made Ali want to grab the blonde and just get dirty in the bathroom. Every time Ashlyn’s fingertips grazed the slit in Ali’s dress, her brain shut down. She melted into a pool every time. When the song ended, she grabbed Ash’s hand and pulled her towards the door. It was time to go. Now.

 

The cab ride felt like it lasted hours—in reality it was about 15 minutes. Ashlyn paid the driver and Ali started towards unlocking her apartment door. Before she got it open, Ashlyn’s strong arms were wrapped around her body, “unlock the door baby and let me inside…you.” Ashlyn smirked at her own joke. She quickly received a jab to the stomach with the defender’s elbow.

When the duo were finally inside, Ali whipped around and started passionately kissing Ashlyn. To the blonde, there was nothing registering besides Ali’s tongue in her mouth. There’s not much Ashlyn remembers about the move from the door to the bedroom except the brunette’s mouth sucking on her neck and her hands roaming all over her upper body.

Within seconds, Ashlyn had Ali slammed against the door of her bedroom. Ali moaned when Ashlyn pressed her thigh between the smaller girl’s legs. Ashlyn began grinding her hips and leg into Ali, who needed some relief of pressure.

Ali grabbed Ashlyn’s shirt and began unbuttoning the buttons. The more she tugged at Ashlyn’s collar, the more the blonde wanted to rip Ali’s dress off and throw it on the floor. She knew that wasn’t an option because Ali was still a princess deep down. Instead, once Ali got the bar owner’s shirt off, Ashlyn picked her up. Ali instinctively wrapped her legs around the blonde and was carried to the bed.

Ashlyn gently laid Ali on the bed and looked her in the eye. There was a silent ‘go on’ given and Ashlyn lifted Ali’s dress over her head. Ashlyn’s mouth visibly got wetter when she saw the lace bra and matching thong on the body in front of her.

“Like what you see?” Ali cockily asked.

The only answer Ashlyn gave was putting her mouth on Ali’s toned stomach and kissing up her body. Before Ashlyn could do anything, Ali had flung off her bra and was laying there with hard nipples. Ashlyn reached up and pinched one, making it even longer than it already was. No one had pinched her breasts before and it turned Ali on more.

Ashlyn moved up and down Ali’s body, kissing every inch of it while Ali continued to play with her own breasts. The blonde’s lips skillfully took Ali’s and bit down. Ali’s hips bucked but Ashlyn grabbed and pushed it back onto the bed. Ali wanted release but the taller girl wanted to tease her a bit longer.

“Baby, please…”

“Please what? Tell me.”

“Touch my pussy.”

Ashlyn didn’t waste any time with her request. As soon as the words shuttered out, Ashlyn rubbed her hand and the woman’s center across her thong. She rubbed a few times until the wetness soaked through.

“You’re so wet for me, Alex.”

“Only for you. I’m yours.” With this, the blonde first took her jeans off then slid Ali’s thong down her toned legs.

As soon as Ashlyn leaned closer to Ali’s core, the smell of ambrosia hit her. She wanted to taste Ali but before doing so, she bit one of her inner thighs, letting her know who was in charge. Ali writhed and let Ashlyn kiss down the rest of her thigh, making her way down to Ali’s core.

Suddenly Ashlyn slid her tongue through the defender’s wet lips for the first time. The only thing Ali could do is grab the blankets around her and moan. Ali’s clit was already swollen. The pressure had built up so much that it wouldn’t take long before she would come undone. Ashlyn realized this after moving her tongue slowly through Ali’s folds a few times.

Although she didn’t want this to be over fast, she knew that Ali needed some kind of release. So that’s what she planned on doing. Slowly, Ashlyn entered Ali with one finger; curling it with every long stroke of her tongue. Ashlyn’s other hand cupped Ali’s strong butt, lifting her hips towards the blonde.

With every flick of her tongue and every movement of her finger, Ali moved closer to the edge.

“Another,” Ali begged. Ashlyn obliged and added another finger inside of Ali slowly—she moaned even louder this time. Once the second finger was added, Ali came hard. She moaned Ashlyn’s name and cursed every word she could think of. Ashlyn didn’t ease up, she let the brunette ride out the orgasm, but she wasn’t done just yet.

Before Ali got the chance to object, her second orgasm was already building. Ashlyn began kissing, sucking, and stroking Ali’s tender clit until she was coming undone yet again. Before Ashlyn tried to go again, Ali grabbed the blonde’s hand and pulled her to her mouth. Ali kissed her hard and could taste her own juices on Ashlyn’s lips. The taste turned her own and she was ready to show Ashlyn just how long she had been waiting to taste her.

 

Ali flipped their positions and started slowly grinding on Ashlyn’s hips. The sensation was driving the blonde wild. Every touch was electrifying and sent shocks straight to her core. Before she knew what was happening, Ashlyn was on the verge of an orgasm of her own. She let loose and the feeling overwhelmed her. She loudly moaned and grabbed onto Ali’s hips to still them.

When she came back to her senses Ali had moved from on top of Ashlyn to between her tattooed legs. Her boxers were tossed onto the floor and Ali’s mouth was centimeters from her center. When Ali touched the blonde, she quivered immediately. She soon started riding Ali’s face to get enough friction where she needed it most. When Ashlyn got close, Ali backed her off and stopped licking her clit so she could kiss her thighs.

This happened two more times before Ali gave in and let Ashlyn have another orgasm. Instead of being loud this time, Ashlyn was completely silent. The only reason Ali knew it happened because she could feel the tightness and pulsing. Ashlyn and Ali were both glistening with sweat and beyond worn out when Ali climbed up to lay on her blonde’s shoulder.

“You okay, stud?”

“I can’t even explain what just happened. It was like an out of body experience.”

“Yeah, I know I’m good,” Ali chuckled. Ashlyn just shook her head at the statement.

Ali though about what had just happened and she realized that this sex was anything but routine. It had a deeper meaning and meant more than any other time she had went this far (it was also better than any other time). After all the dancing, sex, and alcohol the night held, Ali was worn out and soon sleep consumed her. The couple fell asleep naked and intertwined together.


	11. The Secret

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This story is one big cliffhanger after cliffhanger.

“I think I want you to meet my family,” Ali said nonchalantly. While Ashlyn stopped and starred at the brunette, Ali finished making her coffee and sat down.

Ashlyn grinned and followed, “oh so it only took you getting me in bed to realize that?”

“That was just a bonus, dear.”

The night before was the best night of the couple’s lives thus far. They worshipped each other’s bodies and fell deeper in love for one another—even though neither girl would admit it at this point.  Ali, however, knew that she was ready for her girlfriend to meet her family. They were the most important people in her life and she wanted to get their approval.

“What’s your schedule for the National Team look like?”

“We go to a four-week camp in two weeks then we have that friendly against France. We’ll come back, finish the playoffs and league championship, and go back for a two-week camp. And to end October, we have a week and a half off.” Ashlyn’s face visibly dropped at that news. “I mean if you’re worried that it’ll be too long before you meet my fam, we can do it when I’m back for the league stuff.”

“Yeah, uh that’s exactly what I meant.” Ashlyn knew she should have just told Ali what was really bothering her, but she couldn’t seem to find the words.

Ali was going to miss her birthday. She knew she shouldn’t be that bummed since she had been watching the schedule and thinking that her girl would be gone, but with how close they had grown, she just wanted to celebrate with the woman who means a lot to her now. It had been a while since she had a good birthday.

“Okay babe. Let’s go take a run and grab breakfast. I’m going to have to go to my morning practice soon.”

 

In what seemed like a night, the defender was gone to her first camp since she had met Ashlyn. She had been to plenty of national team camps and played in numerous games, but being at this one felt different. She felt homesick. She was missing passes, letting people out run her, and missing her targets. Finally, Jill had enough, “Krieger, take a lap and clear your mind then go to the trainers! You’re done for the day!”

Ali looked her in the eye and walked of the field. She was over playing bad. Ali had dated a few people while she was at camps and the separations weren’t bad; this was not the routine. She missed the blonde every second and couldn’t stop thinking about her. Ali’s head was thinking about Ashlyn and not soccer. She needed to work on that.

HAO walked over to her when the rest of the team went downstairs to shower. “Yo Kriegs, our right side isn’t looking like the strong side, what’s up?”

“Nothing, I’m good.”

“I’ve known you for years, Kriegs. I see the crinkle in your eyebrow. That’s the sign that you’re not okay.”

“I need to tell you something and you’re not going to like it.”

“I’ve always got your back just like you always have mine in a game. Lay it on me.”

Ali started from the top. She told HAO how tired of futbol she had become. She told her that she was falling into a funk until she met someone. HAO knew that she had interactions with women before, so it was noting that Ashlyn wasn’t a man. Ali was just nervous to tell her that she had fallen for someone so quick. It normally wasn’t like her.

Once she told HAO everything, she added a “my family hasn’t even met her and I can’t get her off my mind. What the hell am I thinking?”

“Ali, you’re falling in love. You’re heart’s in control, not your head. I know that you’ve tried not to do that. You’ve always been about soccer, maybe your dreams have just changed.”

“What do I do about it. I need to pick—“

“Slow down, cowgirl. That’s not how it works. Take your time. Open your heart to the girl and maybe you’ll find your way back to love soccer again.”

Ali thanked the veteran player and they continued talking for a while after that.

“Oh Kriegs, I forgot to tell you…I knew Ashlyn in college,” Ali’s jaw dropped. “We played soccer together.”  With this, HAO walked out cackling. Ali knew that Ashlyn but she didn’t know that she played soccer. _Why wouldn’t she tell me? Something had to happen. Wait, there are like 5 UNC players on the team! Do they all know her?_ Ali’s mind was running 100mph. She knew she needed to talk to the blonde soon.

 

Every night Ali Skyped Ashlyn in the hall before she went to bed; her teammates all thought she was just talking to Kyle like normal. All of her teammates but Crystal and now HAO didn’t know the truth. So when Ali got comfortable in a chair down her hall and called Ashlyn, the blonde didn’t think anything about it.

“Hey, pretty girl!” Ashlyn yelled. “Let me walk upstairs so I can hear you better.”

“No need, this is going to be a short call.”

“Uh ok, is everything okay?”

“I don’t know Ash, you tell me.”’

“I think everything is fine,” Ashlyn replied confused. She went down the mental checklist in her head and nothing seemed off.

“Soccer?”

“What about it? Did I miss your game? I thought it was tomorrow! Shit, I’m sorry!”

“Ashlyn, stop. No, the game is tomorrow. You fucking played soccer at UNC. Why didn’t you tell me?”

The tattooed girl looked at Ali through the computer and saw more hurt than madness in her eyes.

“Babe—I, uh it’s a sore subject.”

“I want you to think long and hard about this. I want you to tell me what happened. I’ve been open with you about everything from the start and I keep finding out little hidden secret thing about you. I don’t like surprises Ashlyn, you know that. No one in their right mind would quit playing soccer when they’re as good as you were. D1 full-ride scholarship. Two championships. Something must have happened to make you quit or get kicked off or whatever, but until you tell me the truth, I can’t let you in anymore.”

Ashlyn’s stomach dropped out of her chest. This wasn’t what she was expecting. She figured Ali would find out eventually, but this was not the way she wanted to tell her. Ashlyn kept her mouth shut and Ali sat there starring. “When you’re ready to tell me, you can call me back. Until the game is over tomorrow, my phone will be off. I need to focus.”

When Ali logged off Skype, Ashlyn immediately got on a travel site and booked her flight. She needed to talk to Ali and explain everything in person.

Ali shut her computer, turned off her phone, and walked back to her bedroom where five UNC alums sat. Ali called them to the room hours earlier to find out about college Ashlyn. They told her everything but what she actually wanted to know. “She didn’t tell you?”

“Is it that bad?”

“We’re here for you Ali,” Tobin said, “but you need to hear this story from her.”


	12. I Love You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all of the feedback! I listen to every word of it!!

Was Ali being ridiculous? Yes. Did she know that? Yes. Ali hated surprises and this was why her life had become so routine. Ashlyn was a surprise to her. She wasn’t expecting someone like her to come into her life at all, but here she was. The dimpled woman has squirmed her way into Ali’s heart. Now after knowing that the blonde is hiding something, Ali is torn to pieces.

All of the Carolina girls wouldn’t tell Ali what was going on and that freaked her out even more. They were giving her support but no answers. Her mind went to the worst case scenarios. Ashlyn seemed to be perfectly fine today, but what happened five years ago to make a championship goalkeeper leave the sport she loved? To Ali, it had to be bad. Ashlyn had to of made some sort of life altering mistake.

As the girls left the room one-by-one, Ali was wearing herself out more and more. She didn’t know what to think or what to do at this point. She did the only thing she could do at this point—cry herself to sleep.

 

Ashlyn was a wreck from the time that Ali called. She wasn’t expecting this talk right now, but she knew it would happen eventually. She wasn’t trying to hide her story from Ali, it was just too hard to talk about even five years later.

After she booked her plane ticket, she jumped in her Jeep and called Phil on the way to the airport. He said that he would take care of the bar as long as she was gone. Phil always had her back in times of crisis. She actually doesn’t know what she would do without him.

Luckily for her, the flight that she had booked was leaving ASAP. All she had to do was get to the airport rather quickly and then she could go check-in. There wouldn’t be much down time. She hoped that she could sleep on the plane due to the time difference, otherwise she would be one tired girl in the morning.

When the plane landed at the LA airport, it was about 2AM, she either needed the address or someone to pick her up. She did the only thing she could do, she called Tobin Heath.

A sleepy midfielder came over the phone, “hello?”

“Hey buddy, it’s Ash. I need a favor.”

“Ashlyn? What’s going on?”

“I’m in LA and I need to see Ali.”

“She’s really upset, dude. Why didn’t you tell her why you quit?”

“Tobs you know how hard senior year was for me. C’mon, I just don’t let that information out randomly. Not that Ali is random—I just—there was no right time.”

“Okay so what do you need from me?”

Ashlyn explained that she didn’t know the address and Tobin willingly gave it to her. She also told her Ali’s room number without the blonde even asking. Tobin was one of the closest friends she had at UNC, besides Whitney of course. She knew that she had gone too long without talking to her and she promised to catch up after the game tomorrow.

 

At 2:45AM, Ali heard a banging at her door. She looked at her roommate for the trip, Christen, and she was still sound asleep. Ali slowly got up and made her way to the door, slipping a hoodie on as she walked. _Of course I grabbed Ashlyn’s hoodie. I just can’t let the girl’s hold on me go._ She looked out of the peephole and didn’t see anyone. She wanted to walk back to bed, but she opened the door just to double check.

When she saw Ashlyn in her doorway, she immediately started tearing up. “Wh—what are you doing here?”

“I have to talk to you and I need to do it in person. I wanted to tell you earlier, but I can’t get through the story if I’m not holding your hand or looking into your eyes. I’m really sorry to do this the night before a game, I know you need sleep, but I couldn’t not hear your voice for a few days.”

“Babe it’s okay, let’s go to the seats in the hall and talk there.” Ali grabbed Ashlyn’s hand and led her to the foyer. They sat in the floor cross-legged and faced each other. Ashlyn had her hand resting on the brunette’s thigh for support.

“Umm, ok. Well I guess I should just start then.” Ali just continued to look at her girlfriend. She felt a wave of hurt, shock, and calmness when she saw the hazel eyes looking back at her.

“Okay, well let me start by saying that I didn’t tell you not because I didn’t trust you, but because the story hurts. I hate to relive it, but I’m going to now because you deserve the whole truth.” Ali just nodded her head to continue.

“Remember the ex-girlfriend I had that I caught with the baseball player? There was a lot more to the story. I kinda gave you the simplified version.” The taller girl took a large breath and then began.

“So everything I told you was true. She cheated on me, I found her in my bed, etc. What I didn’t tell you was that when I found them, I started beating the guy because I thought that he had pushed himself on her.” Ashlyn looked down, but kept going. “I was so shocked and devastated that I beat the guy so bad that I damaged his eye. He couldn’t play baseball again. My ex called 911 and they arrested me that night for assault. Anson, our coach, bailed me out the next day when he learned what happened. I couldn’t thank him enough. When the guy woke up in the hospital he said he was going to file charges against me. I was freaking out. My ex stood by me saying that Todd, the baseball player, had pushed himself on her and I was just coming to help her. After hearing upon hearing, the only thing I got was community service. The court commended me for helping a girl in need but said I took it too far, which I did. The school shockingly didn’t expel me, mostly because of Anson I think. He stuck up for me and told them I was a good kid. Most of my team didn’t take my side and they kind of shunned me.  I really only had Tobin and Whitney after that; HAO had already graduated. HAO did text me and call me like every day though when I was going through it.”

“Babe, I, umm, don’t really know what to say.”

“You don’t have to say anything yet, just let me finish and then you can decide if you ever want to see me again…So yeah, I lost my team and even though I had the coach’s support, the team wasn’t going to follow my lead anymore. I quit for the team’s sake; we would have been awful with me trying to give the girls direction on the back line. There was nothing anyone could do about that. In a matter of one night, I lost my friends, my team, my future, and I had no idea what I was going to do. I started drinking myself into a black hole and my grades plummeted. My ex told me that she had lied to save me, but she was willingly having sex with Todd. She apparently loved him. She had also been sleeping with half of the football team too, which I found out later. That’s when she officially ended things because I was a drunk and she “started liking boys again.” I fell even harder down a dark path. Whit and Tobs both tried to pull me out but it never worked. The thing that pulled me out was Whitney calling my grandma and her coming up to see me. When she got there I was super wasted and she knew it, she took my hand and led me back to her hotel room. I have never seen her more upset, not even with my parents or Chris. The look in her eye pulled me out. She said, “little one, I know you’re dealing with a lot right now, but you have to come back to me. I need you. You’re all I’ve got.”” Ashlyn started breaking down. This was the point in the story that always got her.

“Al, I had to pick myself up for my grandma and I did. I didn’t do it for me. I didn’t care about myself anymore; I did it for her. She needed me. I made up all my school stuff and graduated with honors, I saved my friendships with Whit and Tobs, and I managed to create the bar I have today. I’m not sure how I got to the place I’m at, but I know it all started with my grandma. She means the world to me…So there’s that. I don’t know if this is the last time I’ll see you or not, but I did want you to know the truth.”

Ashlyn pulled her hand away from Ali and scooted back a foot or so. The fate of the relationship was now in Ali’s hands and she couldn’t do anything about what her girlfriend’s decision would be.

“Your grandma sounds like a great woman; I’d like to meet her sometime.”

Ashlyn nodded her head and smiled. She would love for Ali to meet her grandmother. They are both two women that the blonde couldn’t live without.

“As for this,” she gestured between the two, “nothing has changed for me. I still trust you with my whole heart and this doesn’t scare me. Sure, I probably would have liked to know earlier, but I understand why you couldn’t tell me then. Your past doesn’t define you, but it has made you into the spectacular woman you are today. You’re resilient and I love that about you. I love you Ashlyn and I always want you by my side.”

Ashlyn looked up astonished, “you love me?”

“More than anything.”

“Even after learning about my past?”

“Especially after learning about your past.”

“I love you too, Alex.” Ashlyn moved back to Ali and they hugged. They stayed like that for a while, just holding each other close. Finally, they broke apart and kissed. This moment was perfectly them.

“Did you get a hotel room?”

“Um, no. I was in a rush so I didn’t look. I plan on going back to the airport and maybe sleeping in one of their chairs.”

“Like hell you are. C’mon we’re sleeping in my room tonight, Christen won’t mind. You’re also coming to the game tomorrow and sitting in the family section. After that, we’ll either get you a hotel room or I’ll ask Jill if you can stay with me again.”

“Baby, are you sure?”

“Yes! Now let’s go to bed, I only have a little bit longer to sleep before breakfast.”

“Sorry…” Ashlyn said as Ali drug her into the hotel room.

“Shutup Ash. I love you.”

“Say it again.”

“I love you, Ashlyn Michelle Harris. Forever.”

“I love you too, sleep well princess.” And with that both girls drifted into a deep sleep. It had been a long night and they needed the comfort of each other’s love. Tomorrow was going to be a new and exciting day. After meeting Ashlyn, nothing was routine anymore for Ali.


	13. A Day in France

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happens in France doesn't stay in France.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the support! Sorry it took so long for me to post this! Hopefully the next one won't be so far away!

When Ali woke up, she felt a heavy arm around her. At first she was confused, then slowly remembered what happened the night before. She was in love with the blonde and had finally told her as much. With as much talking that happened the previous night, the statement of ‘I love you’ was by far the most important. Ali cared about Ashlyn’s past and everything that happened, but the future is what matters now.

Ali turned over as gently as she could and kissed Ashlyn on the cheek. The woman didn’t even budge so Ali tried again. Nothing. And again. Nothing. _Usually Ash is the first up, this is odd._ Three more kisses later and Ashlyn was finally starting to move.

“Mmm that’s what I like to wake up to,” Ashlyn mumbled sleepily.

“Hey baby, are you feeling okay? You wouldn’t wake up for a while.”

“Yeah darlin’. I was just tired. I mean we didn’t get into bed until like 4am, which would be 7am my time. Basically I hadn’t been asleep for a whole day.”

“Oh shit, I forgot about the time difference. It’s breakfast time, so how about I go and then I’ll bring something back for you. Christen left about ten minutes ago.”

“No babe, it’s cool, I want to see everyone,” Ashlyn said as she shifted to get out of bed. “Let’s go eat before the big game!” Ali watched the tired girl in amazement. _She would do anything for me if I asked her. I’m so damn lucky._ “I’m so damn lucky,” Ali said aloud.

“What was that, mumbles?”

“I’m so damn lucky you’re mine,” Ashlyn walked over and planted a kiss on Ali. _Well time to have her meet the team fam. Let’s do this._

All of a sudden Ashlyn felt a pair of arms clutch around her torso, “Ashy!” She knew immediately who the voice was coming from—the one and only Tobin Heath. Oh how she missed the star midfielder.

“I told you to never call me that, Tobs!” Ashlyn laughed. Ali couldn’t help but giggle along at the banter that was going on in front of her.

“And I told you that I do what I want because I can out run you, so ha,” she looked at Ashlyn seriously after the retort and said, “in all honesty, I really missed you. I wondered what happened to you since you never call.”

The duo hugged and Ashlyn began to apologize, but Tobin stopped her before she got too far. “Listen I don’t care why you didn’t talk to me, all I know is that you’re stuck with me now. I need my surfin’ buddy back! We have a lot to catch up on.” Ashlyn agreed to go surfing when the team got back to the States and Tobin was ecstatic.

As more people poured in the dining room, Ashlyn received more and more stares from the players she has watched on television. The blonde knew she was fine to be there because Ali had called the coaches that morning, but not many players knew who she was or why she was here.

Ashlyn quickly and quietly followed behind Ali and got her breakfast. She sat next to her girlfriend and Tobin and began filling the New Jersey girl in on what had been happening in her life. About halfway through her story she hears:

“UNITY!”

Of course, Ashlyn stands up in the semi-crowded room and yells, “STRENGTH!”

Both women look at each other since Lori Chalupney wasn’t on the team anymore. At the same time, they yelled “ATTITUDE! In it to win it!” HAO ran up to Ashlyn and gave her the biggest hug imaginable. Although everyone in the room was looking at the UNC players, they didn’t care. They jumped around and giggled like school girls. Finally, HAO went to get food and Ali decided to ask what that was about.

“Oh, uh I played for the U-19 National Team and it was a chant we did. HOA, Lori, and I did it basically every game we played together after that. It was kind of a tradition.”

“Hold up…you played for the U-19 team?”

“Ye—‘’

“Don’t sell yourself short, Ash. We won that championship with Ashlyn as our goalkeeper,” HAO commented as she sat down across from Ali. The brunette’s jaw dropped, literally.

Tobin decided to enter the conversation then as well, “Yeah Al, she was awesome. One of the best keepers I’ve ever played with, and I’ve played with a lot.” Ali just looked at Ashlyn astonished but before she could ask any more questions, Christen showed up asking her own.

“So this is my new roommate, huh?”

Ashlyn’s face turned a shade more red. “Umm yeah, sorry to just appear out of the blue.”

“Girl don’t even worry about it, I don’t mind. At least I didn’t wake up to you having phone sex,” she said as she looked straight at HAO. It was now Heather’s turn to blush and everyone started cackling. “It was only one time, Christen!”

“Chris, I guess I should actually introduce you to my girlfriend, Ashlyn. She may be staying with us a couple more nights if that’s okay with you.”

“Yeah sure! As long as Toby can come over too.”

“I wouldn’t expect anything le—“

“Wait,” Ashlyn questioned, “y’all are together? You and Tobin?”

Tobin chuckled, “yeah man, you’re not the only one with a smokin’ girl.” Ashlyn high-fived the midfielder and everyone went back to smaller conversations.

People kept filtering into the dining hall and soon it was full. Ali’s teammates were coming over a few at a time to ask who this new person was and soon it got old for the defender. After Pinoe came and asked Ali, she had enough. She stood up at the table and whistled. All heads turned.

“Hey guys, so I know everyone is curious who this woman is, since you keep asking one at a time. Let me just address all of you at once so I don’t have to repeat it again. This is Ashlyn, my girlfriend. She went to UNC and played on the U-19 team. She likes to surf, drink, and take long walks on the beach. Anyone with any more questions can ask her directly. Thanks!”

Ashlyn leaned over and gave Ali a small kiss on the cheek. The blonde likes that Ali is proud of her and isn’t afraid to show it. She hasn’t had that in the past. “Hey babe,” Ashlyn whispered, “that sounded like an ad on a dating site.”

“Don’t be cheeky,” Ali sassily grinned.

 

The game was scheduled to begin late that night, so the girls had some time to do what they wanted as long as it was Jill approved. A group of them chose to rent a car to drive around Paris; sight-seeing was the first thing on the list that they wanted to do.

“It’s gorgeous out here,” Ali said in awe.

“Definitely not as good looking as you though, princess.” Half of the girls made gagging noises, while half cooed at the blonde’s words. Ali gave her a quick kiss on the lips.

“See Tobin, flattery gets you everywhere,” Christen muttered to her.

“Let’s shop!” Kling yelled and it was followed by a bunch of high-pitched screams.

“Okay guys, we can do this on one condition. When it’s time to go, I need you to get moving. I don’t want it to be like wrangling 50 puppies at one time. Ali’s bad enough by herself,” Ashlyn remarked.

All the girls agreed and Ali just rolled her eyes. They had a few hours to shop and the brunette was planning on torturing her girlfriend the whole day.

 

“Alex, please. You already have that same shoe in five colors!”

“When in France, baby!” Ali was being ridiculous in her shopping spree and she knew it.

 

“Can we please leave this purse store,” Ashlyn pleaded. _This is stupid. This bag is like $1000! I could buy like 10 kegs with that!_ The blonde was getting so frustrated and everyone could see it.

“Ali why don’t you take her back to the hotel?” Crystal asked.

“Or take her for coffee? She seems bored,” HAO added.

In the background Ali could hear Ashlyn fussing with one of the vendors on the road. She didn’t know what she was buying, but assumed that the vendor was trying to haggle the bar owner. _No one messes with my girl._ Ali went to the rescue.

“Hey baby, everything okay here?”

The man just looked at Ali and back to Ashlyn. “Elle est votre amour?” The only word Ashlyn knew that he said was love so she nodded her head. He handed her the necklaces and motioned that he wouldn’t take any money in return. After many thanks, the two girls started to walk back to the group.

“Hey blondie,” the French vendor said, “marry that girl.” Ashlyn looked at him astonished. This happened mostly because he spoke English, but also that he could sense how much the two women cared about each other. “I will.”

 

Before the game started that night, Ashlyn found her way to the family section. The longer she spent with Ali in her element, the more she felt like she never wanted to let her go. She had seen Ali play in her league before, but playing on the National Team was a way different speed. She was excited to see how Ali handled herself.

Fifteen minutes into the game, Ashlyn knew that Ali had a superb work ethic with a never-give-up mentality. She ran the length of the field non-stop without losing a breath. The girl had more stamina than Ashlyn had ever seen.

Thirty minutes into the game, Ashlyn knew that Ali would do anything to win the game, even if she got hurt trying. Ali went up for a header the same time that a French player did; they both came down hard. Ashlyn stood up in fear since Ali didn’t budge. After Julie went over and talked to her, Ali was up. Nothing could stop the warrior.

Sixty minutes into the game, Ashlyn knew that Ali had everyone’s back on the field and she would put them before herself. A French player knocked Horan in the back...hard. Ali was there within minutes yelling at the referee and French player. In that moment she didn’t care if she got ejected, she cared about standing up for her friend.

Ninety minutes into the game, Ashlyn knew that she couldn’t let Ali stop loving soccer. Even though she may be tired of it, Ashlyn can see how much Ali still cares about the sport. Ali may be getting bored with winning, but Ashlyn promised herself in that 90th minute that she would make soccer fun again for the brunette.

 

As soon as the game was over, Ali’s eyes met Ashlyn’s. Ashlyn tried to convey as much love as she could in one look. The brunette seemed to understand because she started walking over to the blonde as soon as she had shaken everyone’s hand.

“You did great, Alex. I mean really, really good.”

“Thanks babe. Wanna come down on the field with the team?”

“Are you sure? I don’t want to make it awkward for you.”

“In all honestly Ashlyn, I don’t want to celebrate without you. Forget what the media thinks, I’m proud to call you mine.” Ashlyn shook her head and hopped over the wall easily.

“That was impressive, stud,” Ali joked.

“Oh, you haven’t seen anything yet!” Ashlyn began messing around on the field.

“Stop running around and get your ass over here! You’re such a child, Harris.”

“You love it,” Ashlyn quipped.

“Most importantly, I love you.” When Ali said this, she pressed a quick kiss to Ashlyn’s cheek. As soon as that happened, the camera light flashed. “Well, I guess our secret is out. Do you think you can deal with being a superstar’s girlfriend?”

Ashlyn looked terrified as the light flashed, but soon composed herself. “Are you sure you’re okay with it?”

“Yup, you’re the best thing that’s happened to me. I don’t care to let the world know.” The crowd around the two started to grow larger and larger.

“I haven’t even met your parents…”

“Babe chill, they’ll be in Washington next weekend. We talked about this. Now are you okay with it? Because if you are, I’m going to introduce you to the press.”

Ashlyn took a deep breath, “I’m ready.”


	14. Sparkle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The chapter before the parents meet Ashlyn.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late post, I promise it won't take so long for the next one!

It was a slow night at the bar, too slow for Ashlyn’s liking. She sat in her usual bar stool, doing her usual paperwork, talking to her usual people. Ashlyn kept glancing between Phil and the clock, counting down the minutes until the bar closed for the night. She knew that on particularly quiet nights like this, a shit storm would usually pour down after.

Ali had been busy with the NWSL for the most part since the duo had gotten back from the France game. The Spirit was scheduled to play the Chicago Red Stars in the playoff game on Friday and Ashlyn was excited. Christen was on the Red Stars and wherever Christen was, Tobin went. It would be quality bro time for the two women. At about three hours until closing time, Ali called the bar.

“Hey Phil, can I talk to Ash?” Phil told Ashlyn and transferred the call to her office. He knew that when Ali called, Ashlyn always went to her office to talk. It offered a quiet and private space.

“Hey babe, everything okay?”

“My parents are coming to town tomorrow.”

This confused Ashlyn. Ali’s parents weren’t supposed to come in until after the playoff game. Ali had promised her family a bed to sleep in when they came up to visit, but she had also promised Christen and Tobin that they could stay. She seemed to be double booked now. “Why are they coming early?”

“I don’t know! Something about a writer autographing books on Wednesday and they want to be here for that. I don’t know what to do,” Ali mumbled out in a panic, “you know that Chris and Tobin are coming here too.”

“Ya know, Christen and Tobs can stay at my apartment. I don’t mind. I’ve got an extra bed and I’ll be lonely anyway since you’ll be with your parents.”

“You don’t mind at all?”

“Nope! Tobin is one of my really good friends and Christen is pretty cool too. I’d be glad to let them stay in my guest room.”

“Okay, I’ll call Christen ASAP and let her know about the change of plans. I’ll get her to text Tobin and have her call you to set up stuff. I can’t believe this is happening.”

“Babe, will you please calm down a little. You’re all wound up about this and you still have three more days for Christen and Tobin. Everything is going to work out. Instead of coming here tonight, why don’t you stay at home. Go to sleep and relax so you can fully hang out with your family tomorrow, sound good?” Ashlyn knew how tired Ali was with constantly running around from practice to the bar to her home. As much as she wanted to sleep with Ali, she knew that the brunette needed a good night’s rest.

“But I’ll miss you…”

“You need sleep and to de-stress. Please just go to bed and let me handle the Tobin stuff. I’ll text her and Christen. It’s not a big deal. I’ll miss you too but I don’t need to be there when your parents get there tomorrow morning. Let’s move dinner with your parents up to Tuesday that way we can see each other, then on Wednesday while your parents are gone, we can hang out with Christen and Tobin. Soes that sound like a plan?” Ali finally agreed and got off the phone. This was going to be a long week and both girls knew it.

 When Ali woke up the next day, she had 4 missed calls from her mom. She really didn’t want to call her back but she knew that her parents had to be getting close to Washington. What she really wanted to do was call Ashlyn and have her come over to snuggle. She laid there a few more minutes wondering what her blonde was doing before she finally dialed her mom’s number.

“Hey mama.”

“Ali, sweetie, are you just waking up? That’s so unlike you.”

“Yeah, I was really tired. It’s been non-stop with soccer, you know that.”

“I do and we’re so proud of you! We are about an hour away still.

“I love you, but why have you called me 4 times then?”

“I wanted to talk to you. And you know I like your dad, but we divorced for a reason, I can only be cooped up in a car with him for so long.” Ali had to laugh at that because she knew it was true. She could hear her dad in the background sound extremely shocked.

“Okay you two, I’m going to take a shower before you guys get here. Are you stopping again on the road?”

“You want coffee, don’t you?”

“You know me so well. Thanks ma!”

 

 As the Krieger’s arrived at Ali’s, Ashlyn had already been awake for around five hours. Since her and Ali had started dating, she had almost stopped her morning workouts completely. She was too concerned with cuddling in the morning with her sleepy girlfriend. Today was the day that Ashlyn finally decided to get back into the habit of morning workouts.

When Ashlyn came back from the five mile run she committed to this morning, she was out of breath. Normally she could run 10 miles and be fine, but this was not the case anymore.

The blonde didn’t have much on the agenda for the day, except sign for an order coming into the bar. She loved this order, but hated the delivery guy. Every time he came into the store he acted like an asshole to Ashlyn and hit on any girl in sight. She loved the company, but wished that they would send a different person to deliver to her.

Today was the same s any other with this guy. He came in with a light pink polo (collar popped, of course), tight khaki shorts, and Sperry’s. _Could this guy be any bigger of a frat boy,_ Ashlyn thought.

“Yo blondie, wassup?”

“Hey Chip. Got my order?”

“Would I be here if I didn’t?” Ashlyn rolled her eyes and read down the list of items.

“Chip, where is my German beer?”

“Hell if I know. I’m sure you just forgot to order it.”

“Can you please just go check in your truck.”

“Are you fucking kidding me? Just sign the damn paper, man.”

“I’m not signing this paper because it says my German beer is here and I don’t have it. Now quit being a dick, go do your job, and check to see if my beer is in your truck.” Chip huffed and stomped towards the truck. He was muttering offensive slang under his breath.

“Ya know boss, one day I’m gonna deck that guy.”

“You’re too much of a softie, Phil. You couldn’t hurt a fly,” Ashlyn joked. In all honesty, she knew that if Chip or anyone ever tried something with her, Phil would be first in line to help her.

Chip walked back in rolling a keg, “here.”

“Thanks,” Ashlyn smirked. “And here’s your signed paper.” Chip just walked out of the door and didn’t say a word. She disliked him so much and wished that she could just talk to Ali about her frustration but she knew that Ali was probably with her parents now. Not talking to the brunette who now consumed her life was harder than she thought. She found herself bored and missing Ali more than anything.

 

Although Ali and Ashlyn exchanged a few texts the day before, each girl missed each other like crazy. They survived off phone calls and FaceTime, but with the parents in town there was no privacy to do that. It’s not like Ali’s parents would care that she’s with a girl, they would just be worried about her heart being broken again. She had really cared for her ex and he cheated on her; they definitely didn’t want her to hurt like that again. Her parents didn’t even know meeting Ashlyn was why they were coming this week; they just thought it was for the NWSL playoff. Ali wasn’t hiding her feelings for Ashlyn or the relationship, it just hadn’t come up in conversation yet.

Even though Ali was sure of the relationship, she knew that her parents would be very cautious. She didn’t just want Ashlyn to show up at dinner and explain everything then, she needed to have a conversation with them before dinner.

“Alex, honey, why do you look so scared?”

“Mama, I’ve gotta tell you something.”

“You’re pregn—“

“Uh NO.”

“Well that’s all I got.”

“Really Mom, that’s all you can think of?” Debbie just looked at Ali sweetly waiting for her news. “So, I’m in a relationship.”

“That’s nice hunny. Who is he?”

“That’s the thing—he is a she. Her name is Ashlyn.”

Ali’s mother didn’t miss a beat. “Okay, so what’s the big deal? Is she a murderer? You should know by now that we don’t care about your sexuality.”

“Yeah I know, I just thought you’d care about my next real relationship after the last blowup. Ashlyn and I are serious and I want you to meet her. I just thought that it would be a really big deal.”

“It is a big deal, Alex, but you’re a grown woman. I trust you and your judgement. If you say Ashlyn is the one you love and want to be with, then I believe that and wish you the best. You know she’ll be welcomed into our family with open arms.”

“I didn’t say anything about love.”

“You didn’t have to, I saw the look in your eyes when you said her name. They sparkled.”

“I do love her and I really appreciate you being so loving as always. Now will you tell dad that we’re having dinner with her tonight. Please, I’ll love you forever.” Ali lovingly smiled at her mom.

“Damn that Krieger smile. I’ll tell him when he gets back from getting us coffee.”

Ali knew that she was lucky to have the mother that she has. She wishes more than anything that Ashlyn grew up the same way. Ashlyn might not of had a a great family growing up, but now she was about to be inducted into the Krieger family. That made Ali happier than anything—knowing that she is going to help Ashlyn have a real family built on trust and love. She couldn’t wait until dinner that night to introduce everyone since those were the most important people in her life.


	15. Meet the Kriegers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will the parents like Ashlyn? Will previous relationships pose as an issue or can everyone move past the last relationship failure?

45 minutes before dinner with Ashlyn:

“Honey I understand…I know we have to behave.”

“I’m worried about Dad’s reaction.”

“Stop.”

 

30 minutes before dinner with Ashlyn:

“Alex, will you calm down? It’s just dinner.”

“Dad, this is important. Just act normal.”

‘You’re the one acting weird,’ Ken huffed under his breath.

 

20 minutes before dinner with Ashlyn:

Kyle called Ali because Deb texted him. Their parents were tired of Ali’s worried statements at this point.

“BB, chill out. They’ll love her like I already do.”

“I’m worried they’ll scare her away.”

“Have more faith in Ash than that. She can handle it.”

 

10 minutes before dinner with Ashlyn:

“Sweetheart stop pacing.”

“She’ll be here soon.”

“I’m aware of the time, Alex.”

 

Ali’s parents were grateful when the doorbell rang; they didn’t were over their daughter’s anxiety. Ali basically ran to the door to meet Ashlyn before she entered the apartment. Deb just shook her head at Ali’s tactics. Ali had always had concern about her parents meeting current partners no matter what her age was, but it was never this bad. Deb knew that this meant that Ashlyn was special.

“Hey baby,” Ali said as she opened the door just wide enough to slip out. When she walked out she was astonished to see that the blonde had cut all of her hair off.

“Uh hey, you not gonna let me come in?” Ashlyn gave Ali a quick beck on the lips.

“Yeah, I just wanted to steal a quick moment with you. I like the new short hair. You’re a stud.”

“I’m glad you like it babe; I probably should have showed you before I did it.”

“Nahh, it’s a nice surprise. I know you said you wanted to. Ready to go inside?” Ashlyn just nodded. “Also, I love you no matter what happens tonight.” With this, Ashlyn became nervous. _What does she mean? Have they already deemed me unfit to date their daughter?_ Ashlyn was confused but followed behind the brunette into the apartment.

When Ashlyn entered the home, Deb noticed two things. One, Ali was clutching Ashlyn’s arm for dear life. It’s like she thought that her parents were going to take the blonde away from her. And two, Ashlyn Harris was gorgeous. The tattoos. The muscles. The hair. She was proud; her daughter did good.

“Hey Ashlyn, nice to meet you,” Ken said as he offered his hand. Ashlyn shook it and returned the hello.

“I’m Deb, Ali’s mom.” Ashlyn offered her hand, but Deb countered, “oh Ashlyn no, I’m a hugger! Come here!” Ashlyn laughed and was engulfed in a hug by the older brunette. Ali just smiled watching the interaction.

“Well, now that everyone’s acquainted, let’s start walking to dinner. Papa bear is hungry!” Ali and Deb just rolled their eyes. In that moment, Ashlyn knew exactly what she was going to have on her hand in 30 years and she was excited.

 

“So Ashlyn, what do you do? Ali just said you had your own business.”

The bar owner started out slowly; she didn’t know how Ali’s parents felt about bars or alcohol in general. “Yeah I do. When I moved here from college, I started my own business. I built my own bar and grill that’s called The Corner Tavern. That’s actually where Ali and I met.”

“That’s awesome!” Deb exclaimed, “how did you have enough money rightout of college to build your own bar? That’s really impressive.” Ali was curious too, she had never thought about how Ash had created the bar.

“Oh, well I had help. When I first started the bar I had loans of course, but I also had a partner in the business. Technically it was my bar, created, designed, and maintained all by me, but my partner was the money side of things. I pitched him the idea and he liked it so he signed as my partner until I made enough money to pay him back. Once I did, he signed over his share because he never wanted any part in it other to help me out.”

“Who was this mystery man?” Ali asked.

“Anson, my coach from UNC.” All three people sitting at the table were surprised. Ali’s parents didn’t know that Ashlyn knew the soccer coach and Ali didn’t know that she was actually that close with her previous coach.

“Did you play soccer?” Ken wondered. Once he took a better look at his daughter’s girlfriend, he knew the answer. “Actually I guess a better question is what position did you play?”

Ashlyn laughed, “I was a keeper for UNC. When I was really little I was kind of forced into being a keeper. I played with boys growing up and I always tackled the shit out of them since they were so fast. My coach said I had too many yellow cards and he couldn’t keep me on my feet so he put me in goal.” The whole family laughed; Ali could actually see baby Ashlyn doing that.

“She was actually really good, dad. D1 full scholarship, 2 championships at UNC, and a championship with the U-19 team. She was incredible.” Ashlyn looked at her with questioning eyes. “I may have googled you, babe.”

“Of course you did.”

Ali’s parents watched the interaction and knew that this relationship was going to be a good one. They didn’t know Ashlyn well, but with the interactions they saw with their daughter, they knew how much the women meant to each other. They approved.

 

As the night went on, the conversation hit some light points and some serious topics. Ken gave his opinion of Ali’s last relationship, Ashlyn talked about her past with her brother, and Deb swooned over Ashlyn’s description of her tattoos.

“Well I think it’s getting late, Ken stated,” we should probably start heading back to the house.” The other three in the party agreed so they paid their check and left.

Once at the apartment, Ali told her parents that she was actually going to stay at Ashlyn’s tonight due to the early meeting with Tobin and Christen the next day. She left her key with her parents since Ashlyn has one she could use.

When Ali went to her room to grab some things, Ken and Deb decided to have a small chat with Ashlyn alone.

“Hey Ashlyn, umm can we talk to you seriously for a second?” Ashlyn’s stomach dropped with the question from Ali’s dad, but she agreed.

“I just want to thank you, and I’m sure Deb will agree with me. Ali was in a dark spot after she ended things with her ex. We didn’t know if she was ever going to be happy again because even soccer wasn’t helping. You make her happy; I can see the sparkle in her eyes again. I don’t know if she has told you she loves you, but if she hasn’t, just know that she does.”

Deb added, “Alex usually tried to keep her heart hidden, but one you’re in, she won’t stop being loyal. It took an act of Congress to finally get her to see the negative impact of her ex. We like you Ashlyn; you’re good for our daughter. I want you to stick around because I think you’d be an awesome daughter-in-law.”  Ashlyn’s jaw visibly dropped at that statement. Her hands began getting all clammy.

“Oh sweetheart, don’t get nervous at that. It’s still early. I’m not saying to marry her tomorrow; I’m just throwing that out as a future statement. You seem to have a good head on your shoulders and we like that.”

Ali walked back into the room and saw that her girlfriend’s face was pale. “Okay guys, I don’t know what you said to her, but we’re going to go before it gets worse.”

Ali grabbed Ashlyn’s hand and walked out of the house, “everything ok, stud?”

“Yeah I’m just tired, let’s go home.” Ali secretly loved it when Ashlyn said they were going ‘home.’ It made her feel safe and like she wasn’t alone anymore. That’s all she wanted and that would be a conversation for another day with her previous blonde. The night had gone good and now all she wanted was to sleep in her girlfriend’s arms.


	16. Give me the World

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So this chapter is pretty much a filler until the next one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for sticking around with me guys! I've had a busy holiday season and I was pretty unsure on where I wanted this story to go. I think I'm figuring it out again!

_Three more days of this_ , Ali thought, _three more days and I get Ashlyn all to myself again._ Tobin and Christen had just made it to Ashlyn’s apartment and Ali was already feeling a little spaced out. She had spent a couple days with her family and now she was about to spend three more days with Tobin, Christen, and her family again. If Ali was being honest with herself, she just needed a few days alone with her girlfriend.

Ali walked over to Christen while Tobin and her short-haired love were making plans for the morning since her and Christin would be at training before the game. “They look like happy kids, don’t they?” Christen asked.

“Yeah, it’s kinda weird seeing Tobin and Ash interact. It’s like they’ve known each other for years.”

“Well they have, Al. I mean apart from a few years in-between I guess.”

“Did Tobin tell you anything about those years or knowing Ash in the past?”

“Not really,” Christen said thinking back, “mostly she thought that Ashlyn was like a sister to her and it hurt when she dropped off the face of the Earth. I know she said that Ashlyn had a hard time for a few years and she tried to be there for her. That’s honestly it. She didn’t tell me any details or anything.”

“Okay, I was just wondering…”

“Do I need to be worried about what happened in the past, Al?”

“Nope! Everything in the past is in the past. I love her and she loves me and that’s all you need to know!” Ali giggled. “I love you Chris, and I’m glad you want to make sure I’m happy and safe.”

“I love you too Alexandra!”

 

The next two nights, Ali spent at her apartment with her family.  Her parents could tell that something was off with the brunette, but they didn’t bring it up until the night after the game.

“Alex, can I talk to you for a minute?” Deb asked.

“Sure Mama, what’s up?” Ali cheerfully walked to the kitchen to sit down next to her mother. Before anything was said, Ali could tell that her mother was concerned about something. Her head immediately started flooding with thoughts about something happening to one of her parents. “Is something wrong?”

“Sort of. I can tell that something is bothering you and I just want to know what it is. You’re my little girl and I want to take care of you if you’re hurting or upset about something.” Deb looked a little anxious about the topic at hand.

“Mom, everything is fine. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“No Alex, it’s not. Before the game you were walking around like a zombie, like you had no purpose. You just seemed to be following along with life, not living it. Now I love you and I know your body language, don’t lie to me sweetheart.”

Ali zoned out immediately after that, reminiscing about a particular night last week:

 

**Ali was coming to see Ashlyn from a late night training her team had before the playoffs started. Ali had her own key so she walked in yelling for her girlfriend. After a couple minutes of no answer, Ali walked in to the taller woman’s bedroom hearing her voice. Ashlyn was dancing around her room with headphones in, eyes closed, and singing as loudly as she could to her favorite song currently, _Love on the Brain_ by Riahana. The only thing Ali could manage to do was lean herself on the doorway, lovingly smiling, while watching the oblivious Ashlyn.**

**Ashlyn opened her eyes and finally noticed Ali standing in her door. Ashlyn looked awe struck and full of love as soon as her eyes meet chocolate brown ones. When Ali saw the look that the blonde was giving her, she felt an instant tingle in her stomach. She knew she wanted to see that look for the rest of her life and she knew that her girlfriend would be the one to give that look to her.**

“Mom, I have something most people spend their lives searching for.”

“What’s that, hunny?”

“Someone who would give me the world if I asked, and it terrifies me.”

“Aww Alex, that’s normal. You’re being vulnerable again and that’s such a good thing. I don’t think Ashlyn would do anything to lose you.”

“No Mom, you don’t get it. I’m not worried about her messing something up, I’m worried about me messing things up. She’s perfect and deserves the world. She’s lived a rough life and has made it out. She has so much love in her heart and she trusts me with it. I love her so much and I want her around non-stop. I don’t want to smother her, but she’s like my breath of fresh air. I need her with me. These past few days have been Hell and it’s because she’s so close, yet so far away.”

“Have you told her any of this? Anything about your insecurities?”

“No, I mean she knows my history and she understands that. It’s not like I have anything to worry about, but you should see the ways that girls look at her. They look like they want to eat her. That’s neither here nor there though. I guess what I’m trying to say is that I love her. I want to move in with her. I want to marry her. Any maybe one day, I want to have her babies.”

“GRANDBABIES!”

“Mom chill.”

“Sorry sweetheart, but I am so ready to be a grandma! I think you need to tell Ashlyn all of this. Tell her how you want to do all of those things with her.”

“How can I do that Mom? I can’t just invite myself to move in with her. That’s awkward.”

“Have you talked to anyone about this? Kyle? Carm? Christen? HAO? Crystal?”

“No…”

“You should probably do that. I’m all about you moving in with her and even marrying her. I actually told her that the other day.”

“You what?!?”

“Don’t act so shocked.”

 

Ali looked a little overwhelmed and worried about what Deb said. She knew she needed to talk to Ashlyn, but when would the right time be? Just then a text came in from her girlfriend.

Ash: Hey babe, I know it’s the last day with your family. Want to go on a date with me tomorrow? We can celebrate your win!

Ali: I’d love that

Ash: You okay? That was a short response.

Ali: Yeah, I just have a lot on my mind. We can talk about it tomorrow.

Ash: Okay baby, I love you J

Ali: Love you too

 

As sure as Ali was about the future with Ashlyn, she was equally sure that she had no clue on how she wanted to approach these topics with the blonde. From what she remembered about walking out with Ashlyn a few nights before, her girlfriend looked pale, presumably from what her mother said about marriage. With those thoughts in her head, she didn't even know if Ashlyn wanted to marry her or if she wanted marriage at all. That was a big deal for Ali, so this may be a really big obstacle that they have to cross.

Ali continued to work herself into a panic when she realized that Ashlyn had never said anything about moving in together. They exchanged keys for convenience, at least that's what  Ali thought. Her apartment either needs a renewal of her two-year contract on living there or a withdraw of contract in the next two months. Ali knew she was cutting it close, but she had really hoped that Ashlyn would have asked her to move in by now.

 _I need to talk to someone like Mom said,_ Ali thought to herself, _but who? Carm? She doesn't know a lot about Ash, but she does know the way my brain works, Christen? I'm sure she's gone through this with Tobin, or will have to go through it soon. She always has good advice. Crystal? She knows Ash a little, and she's always pretty good to talk to. Kyle? He seems to get along with Ashlyn and he definitely knows me. HAO? She knows a lot about Ash and a lot about me. I just don't know how updated she is with everything. I just don't know who I need to talk to bout this..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm already working on the next chapter, so it will get posted sometime soon!

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first piece of writing. Tell me what you think good or bad!


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